Messi: I want to win it all for Barcelona

(CNN) -- Three-time world player of the year Lionel Messi outlined his and Barcelona's intention to win back the club's Spanish and European crowns after Sunday's season-opening 5-1 victory over Real Sociedad.

The Argentine forward, who scored 50 league goals last season and 73 overall for the Catalan side, netted twice in the opening 15 minutes of Barca's first competitive match under new coach Tito Vilanova.

It gave Barca an early edge in the title race as defending champions Real Madrid drew 1-1 with Valencia ahead of Thursday's first leg of the Spanish Super Cup -- which will be the first "El Clasico" clash of the 2012-13 campaign.

Sunday's match also saw Spain striker David Villa make a goalscoring comeback from a broken leg which had sidelined him since December and caused him to miss his country's triumph at Euro 2012.

"We are a team that wants to keep on winning important titles for the club," Messi told BarcaTV.

From Inter Milan to Manchester City: The reigning English Premier League champions have snapped up right-back Maicon for an undisclosed fee to help boost their bid for domestic and European honors in 2013. The Brazilian international has been at the San Siro for the past six seasons and made 235 appearances for the club.

Spurs to Hamburg: The Dutch international returns to the Bundesliga after a successful two-year spell at the north London club. Van der Vaart played for Hamburg from 2005 to 2008 before joining Spanish champions Real Madrid.

Manchester United to Fulham: With the arrival of Robin van Persie from Arsenal earlier this month, the chances of Dimitar Berbatov playing even more of a bit part at Old Trafford have only increased. Fulham have been the benefactors of Alex Ferguson's growing indifference to the player he signed for $47 million from Tottenham Hotspur in 2008. The 31-year-old Bulgarian rejected suitors in Italy, notably Juventus and Fiorentina, to stay in the English Premier League.

Sao Paulo to Paris Saint-Germain

The $55 million paid by PSG for 19-year-old midfielder Lucas Moura broke the Brazilian transfer record for the third time this year, eclipsing the fee the French club spent on Thiago Silva and Chelsea's deal for Oscar. He will move to Paris in January, becoming the sixth Brazilian at the club.

AC Milan to Paris Saint-Germain

At $50.75 million, Thiago Silva is the world's most expensive defender in terms of upfront transfer fees -- though the largest including add-ons remains Rio Ferdinand's move from Leeds to Manchester United, which eventually rose to $150,000 more than the Brazilian's total). The 27-year-old spent three years in Italy with AC Milan and is an established international.

Athletic Bilbao to Bayern Munich

Spain midfielder Javi Martinez completed a "complicated" move to the Bundesliga giants after activating a $50 million buyout clause in his contract that left him having to foot some of the bill.

Tottenham to Real Madrid

Luka Modric completed his long-awaited switch from English club Tottenham Hotspur to Spanish champions Real Madrid for a reported $50 million. After attempting to force a transfer ahead of the 2011-12 season, the Croatian has finally got his move away from White Hart Lane.

Lille to Chelsea

Eyebrows may have been raised upon seeing the size of the $49.5 million transfer fee Chelsea paid for Eden Hazard, but the 21-year-old Belgium winger is one of Europe's biggest talents, having being selected for the Ligue 1 Team of the Year three times in a row.

Internacional to Chelsea

After a protracted saga of a transfer, Chelsea finally gave in to Internacional president Giovanni Luigi's demands and paid a Brazilian transfer record $39.25 million for 20-year-old midfielder Oscar. Only time will tell if the talented young playmaker is worth the money, but with so many creative options at Roberto di Matteo's disposal he may well have to make an immediate impact or risk spending a season on the bench.

Arsenal to Manchester United

Robin van Persie, the English Premier League's top scorer last season, stunned Arsenal fans by joining rivals United for $37 million after refusing to sign a new contract.

Napoli to Paris Saint-Germain

Argentina international forward Ezequiel Lavezzi arrives at PSG with a $36.25 million price tag and a big reputation following his five years in Italy. He will link up with another former Serie A star in Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Borussia Dortmund to Manchester United

Those who cynically write off $26.25 million signing Shinji Kagawa as nothing more than a ploy to boost United shirt sales in Asia do so at their own peril -- the 23-year-old is a top-level player with excellent credentials: two Bundesliga titles, one German Cup, an Asian Cup and more than 30 appearances for Japan.

Everton to Manchester City

Young England international Jack Rodwell was Roberto Mancini's first signing since winning Manchester City's first English league title in 43 years. At $24 million he is far from the most expensive player at the Etihad Stadium, but the highly-rated 21-year-old midfielder is seen as a long-term investment.

AC Milan to Paris Saint-Germain

Until last season, Zlatan Ibrahimovic had won the league eight years in a row with five different clubs. The Sweden striker's $24 million move to PSG pushed him further ahead of Nicolas Anelka as the most expensive player of all time, with total transfers of more than $210 million.

Arsenal to Barcelona

For the second year in a row, a key Arsenal player has been lured to Spain by Barcelona. Last August it was Cesc Fabregas, this time it's Cameroon midfielder Alex Song. The 25-year-old moved for $23.7 million on a five-year contract, with a release clause of $100 million.

Malaga to Arsenal

Spain star Santi Cazorla was one of Malaga's marquee signings last season, but is the first of the troubled Spanish club's high-profile players to depart in the midst of financial problems. The winger's $23.5 million fee is similar what he cost when joining from Villarreal.

Borussia Monchengladbach to Borussia Dortmund

Finishing fourth in both goals scored and assists last season, Marco Reus almost single-handedly pushed Borussia Monchengladbach to a fourth-place finish in Germany and Champions League football. Champions Dortmund see the 23-year-old, who cost $21 million, as the ideal replacement for Shinji Kagawa -- and if his brief appearances at Euro 2012 are anything to go by he could become much more.

FC Twente to Borussia Monchengladbach

After much interest from all corners of Europe, FC Twente's top-scoring target man Luuk de Jong decided to join Borussia Monchengladbach in an $18. 5 million deal. The 21-year-old, who scored 25 goals in 32 appearances last season, went to Euro 2012 but did not appear for the Netherlands.

Montpellier to Arsenal

With the eyes of the English Premier League's fans firmly set on the Robin Van Persie transfer saga, many have neglected the man coming in to replace him -- $18.5 million France international Olivier Giroud. For all the money PSG spent last season, it was Giroud and his 21 goals which spurred underdogs Montpellier to a first Ligue 1 title.

Valencia to Barcelona

New Barca boss Tito Villanova acted quickly to fill the gap left since Eric Abidal's liver transplant, bringing in Spain's Euro 2012 surprise standout player Jordi Alba for a bargain $17 million to fill the left-back slot before the tournament had even finished.

AS Roma to Liverpool

New Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers paid $17 million for 21-year-old striker Fabio Borini, whose nine goals in 24 appearances at Roma earned him selection for Italy's Euro 2012 squad. He returns to Britain following an earlier loan spell with Rodgers' former club Swansea.

FC Cologne to Arsenal

Lukas Podolski has left his childhood club Cologne for the second time, having struggled to make an impression at Bayern Munich following his 2006 transfer. The Germany star cost Arsenal $15.75 million after scoring 18 Bundesliga goals last season -- which was not enough for "the Billy Goats" to avoid relegation.

Vfl Wolfsburg to Bayern Munich

A surprise star of Euro 2012, Mario Mandzukic scored three times in three games for Croatia to be the tournament's equal top scorer. Bayern paid Bundesliga rivals Wolfsburg $15.75 million for the 26-year-old striker's services.

Ajax to Tottenham Hotspur

Belgium international Jan Vertonghen is already being touted by Tottenham fans as the long-term replacement for injury-plagued former captain Ledley King in the center of defense. His protracted $11.5 million transfer could prove key to the fortunes of new Spurs boss Andre-Villas Boas.

Marseille to Chelsea

Chelsea took its spending in the current transfer window to over $100m with the signing of Spanish full back Cesar Azpilicueta from French team Marseille.

Werder Bremen to Chelsea

Germany midfielder Marko Marin agreed his $9.5 million move to Chelsea before last season had even finished, and the 23-year-old is expected to make a big impact for the European champions with the skills that have seen him dubbed "the German Messi."

AC Milan to Internazionale

Antonio Cassano has left AC Milan to join city rivals Inter, while fellow Italy striker Giampaolo Pazzini went in the other direction. Milan had to pay a reported $8.7 million extra for Pazzini, who at 28 is two years younger than his former Sampdoria teammate. Cassano, meanwhile, recovered from heart surgery to help Italy reach the final of Euro 2012.

Internazionale to Internacional

Diego Forlan struggled to impress in his one season in Italy after seven prolific years in Spain's top flight, but the 33-year-old Uruguay striker could prove to be a free-transfer bargain in Brazil for Internacional. He was named best player at the 2010 World Cup, where he was joint top scorer, and has led the goal charts twice in Europe.

Fiorentina to AC Milan

Midfielder Riccardo Montolivo agreed to join Milan on a free transfer before helping Italy reach the final of Euro 2012, having spent seven years at Fiorentina.

Real Madrid to Liverpool

Turkey midfielder Nuri Sahin failed to impress in in his one season at Real Madrid after being snapped up from German champions Borussia Dortmund, and has been given the chance to kickstart his career in the English Premier League.

Maicon -- undisclosed fee

Rafael van der Vaart -- $16 million

Dimitar Berbatov -- undisclosed fee

Lucas Moura - $55M

Thiago Silva - $50.75M

Javi Martinez - $50M

Luka Modric - $50M

Eden Hazard - $49.5M

Oscar - $39.25M

Robin van Persie - $37.5M

Ezequiel Lavezzi - $36.25M

Shinji Kagawa - $26.25M

Jack Rodwell - $24M

Zlatan Ibrahimovic - $24M

Alex Song - $23.7M

Santi Cazorla - $23.5M

Marco Reus - $21M

Luuk de Jong - $18.5M

Olivier Giroud - $18.5M

Jordi Alba - $17M

Fabio Borini - $17M

Lukas Podolski - $15.75M

Mario Mandzukic - $15.75m

Jan Vertonghen - $11.5M

Cesar Azpilicueta - $11m

Marko Marin - $9.5M

Cassano/Pazzini - Swap

Diego Forlan - Free transfer

Riccardo Montolivo - Free transfer

Nurhi Sahin - Season loan

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Top European football transfers

French football club spends big

Waking a sleeping football giant

Pep Guardiola waved goodbye to Barcelona on Friday in the only way he knows how -- by winning a trophy. The club's victory in the Spanish Cup final took his haul of trophies to 14 during his four years in charge.

Guardiola is inextricably linked with Barcelona. He was born in Catalonia, and joined Barca's academy in 1984, winning six Spanish league titles and one European Cup before leaving for Italy in 2001.

After a spell coaching Barcelona's 'B' team, in which he delivered promotion to the second tier of Spanish football, Guardiola was handed the top job in June 2008 by then president Joan Laporta (L).

Guardiola's dedication to an approach known as "tiki taka" -- a fluent passing style based around dynamic movement -- was immediately evident, as players like Xavi and Andres Iniesta, both World Cup winners with Spain in 2010, flourished. Guardiola also maximised the use of a young striker called Lionel Messi, who would go on to break all records.

In Guardiola's first season Barcelona won an unprecedented treble as they scooped the Spanish league title, the Spanish Cup and the European Champions League, beating Manchester United in Rome.

By the time 2009 was out, Barca had added the Spanish Supercup, European Supercup and Club World Cup trophies to their cabinet, making it six won in Guardiola's first season. He also retained the Spanish league title in 2010.

Prior to the 2010 season Real Madrid employed Jose Mourinho, the self-anointed 'Special One' as their coach. This intensified the fierce rivalry between the two giants, and provoked a series of disagreeements between two of the game's biggest names.

Despite Mourinho's presence, Guardiola again retained the Spanish league title in 2011 and claimed his second European Champions League crown, as Barca again beat Manchester United, this time at Wembley in London.

But for months there had been rumors that the demands of the job and those he placed on himself were wearing Guardiola down. After Barcelona had relinquished both their league and Champions League titles, he confirmed he was standing down. "The reason is simple: four years is enough," he said. "I'm drained and I need to fill up."

At the press conference to announce Guardiola's departure Barca confirmed his assistant Tito Vilanova would take over as coach. As another disciple of Barcelona's approach, he has a tough task to replicate Guardiola's achievements.

Guardiola's long goodbye

Barca in his blood

Back in the fold

The architects of tiki taka

The Kings of Europe

The joy of six

New kid on the block

Wizards of Wembley

Going, going, gone

The King is dead, long live the King

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How Pep Guardiola reinvented football

Who will be Europe's club champions?

Under previous coach Pep Guardiola, Barca won three league titles and the European Champions League on two occasions but last season the Catalans' only success came in the Spanish Cup.

"I want to win it all, just like Tito," the 25-year-old Messi said. "It will be difficult, but we'll try. It's important to start off winning."

Barca will face Jose Mourinho's Real at the Camp Nou on Thursday, with Messi and his teammates looking to win the Spanish season's annual curtain-raiser for the fourth year in a row.

"Despite having a new manager, the team continues to play with the same philosophy," said Messi. "We're playing with the same style of play.

"It will be a complicated match because they are an experienced rival. The key to success is that all players actively participate so that we can score goals."

After the win over Sociedad, Barca's players spoke of their delight at seeing Spain's all-time leading goalscorer Villa return to action as a late substitute.

"Villa's return is the best piece of news of the game," said Spain forward Pedro, who scored Barca's fourth goal just before halftime. "He scored a goal and it's an absolute joy to have him with us."

Barca captain Carles Puyol opened the scoring with an early header on his return to competitive action after missing Euro 2012 due to knee surgery.

"I'm really happy that we won and that El Guaje (Villa) scored!" the veteran defender wrote on Twitter.

Meanwhile, midfielder Alex Song arrived in Barcelona on Monday to complete his switch from English Premier League team Arsenal. The Cameroon star was set to undergo a medical ahead of move worth a reported $23.5 million.

The 24-year-old becomes the second high-profile exit from the Emirates Stadium in the last week, following Robin van Persie's transfer to Manchester United.

"He's a footballer that gives us a bit of height. He'll surprise us with his skill, he's a great player," said Vilanova, who added that Song would provide backup for holding midfielder Sergio Busquets and would also be used as a central defender.