FCBARCELONA.CAT

30.09.2007 13:26

Sixth hat-trick of the Rijkaard era

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Thierry Henry's three goals against Levante was the sixth hat-trick scored during Frank Rijkaard's reign as coach of FC Barcelona as he followed in the footsteps of Lionel Messi, Samuel Eto'o and Ronaldinho.

The Frenchman's triple in the Ciutat de Valencia on Saturday evening was the first hat-trick of the 2007-08 campaign and also saw Henry score his first league goals for the Blaugrana since signing from Arsenal in the summer. It is not unsurprisingly the first time that player has netted three times in a game since Rijkaard took over as coach.

In the Dutchman's first season at the helm, Barça defeated Púchov 8-0 in the UEFA Cup on October 15, 2003, and Ronaldinho enjoyed the game as he scored three goals. Luis Enrique and Javier Saviola both scored twice in the rather one-sided encounter, while Thiago Motta completed the scoring. During the league 2004-05 campaign no hat-tricks were scored by a player from FC Barcelona.

Two hat-tricks in the Champions League

Ronaldinho and Eto'o netted hat-tricks during the 2005-06 season, however, with both players netting their triples in the Champions League as the team headed towards glory in Paris.

On September 27, 2005, Ronaldinho was the star as he scored three tims in an emphatic 4-1 win over Udinese in Camp Nou. Deco netted the other goal for the home side that night.

In the next home game in the group stage that term, Eto'o hit a hat-trick as Barça defeated Panathinaikos 5-0. Mark Van Bommel and Messi also added their names to the scoresheet.

Alavés and Madrid

Last season Saviola and Messi both hit triples. In the Copa Del Rey, Barça beat Alavés 3-2 and Saviola netted all the goals, while Messi then scored a hat-trick in a thrilling encounter with Real Madrid, that ended 3-3 in Camp Nou.