The best way to describe Barcelona's championship season in La Liga

Two words can best describe Barcelona's season: Messi happened.

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The Catalan side clinched the La Liga title in fitting fashion on Sunday, with Lionel Messi scoring the match winner over last season’s champion, Atletico Madrid, in a 1-0 victory at the Vicente Calderon. The race looked like it would go down to the final day, but Messi scored in the 65th minute to secure Barcelona's fifth league championship in the last seven seasons.

Messi made the difference. He was the difference. Just a year ago, he had been unable to conjure the magic that makes him, well, Messi.

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On the final day of last season, Barcelona only needed to beat Atletico Madrid at home to win the league. After Alexis Sanchez scored just past the first hour, Barca looked on its way to a La Liga title despite Messi not being up to his own insane standard. When Diego Godin leveled the score just after the second half started, the stage was set for a match winner. However, Messi didn’t score, and a small group of Atletico Madrid supporters famously celebrated in a tiny corner high atop the Camp Nou.

On Sunday, the little Argentine scored his 41st La Liga goal of the season and he now has 54 goals in 54 games in all competitions. Messi also claimed his 22nd trophy with Barcelona. With two more finals to be played – in the Copa del Rey on May 30 and in the Champions League on June 6 – he could add two more pieces of silverware.

Yes, Messi happened, and that is the best way to describe this season. Along with scoring the title-clinching goal, Messi also scored once and earned credit for two assists in the Copa del Rey semifinals. And in the Champions League semifinals, a lifeless Jerome Boateng laid on the ground thinking "What happened?” Messi happened, that's what.

Of course, he did not do it alone. Neymar and Luis Suarez played their parts. Ivan Rakitic earned his place in the squad. Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Dani Alves and Gerard Pique regained form that had seemingly escaped them over the recent seasons. Coach Luis Enrique struggled with a crisis and came out stronger on the other end.

For Xavi, this was his eighth league title. If Barcelona beats Athletic Bilbao in the Copa del Rey final, Xavi will have his fourth domestic cup trophy. Likewise, if the Catalans can best Juventus in Berlin, Xavi will go home with his fourth Champions League trophy.

Above all, though, when the story of Barcelona's season is written, two simple words will describe what happened: Messi happened.

Shahan Ahmed is a soccer columnist for Yahoo Sports. He has previously written about the 2014 World Cup and 2013 Confederations Cup and regularly provides opinions on the English Premier League, UEFA Champions League, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A and Spanish La Liga. Follow Shahan on Twitter: @ShahanLA and @perfectpass.

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