Scoring a hat-trick in a game of football is considered to be the pinnacle of success for a goalscorer. Over the years, there have been some significant and memorable hat-tricks in the European Championship.
Ahead of Euro 2020, here's a compilation of the hat-tricks scored over the years -
Dieter Muller: 1976 semi-finals, Yugoslavia 2-4 West Germany (aet)
Dieter Muller of West Germany scored the first hat-trick in the European Championship. He struck in the 82nd, 115th and 119th minute. Coming on as a substitute when his team was trailing 2-1, he made his West Germany debut with 11 minutes left on the clock.
He scored his first goal three minutes after coming and equalised for his team. In extra time he scored two more and completed the European Championship’s first hat-trick in 37 minutes.
Klaus Allofs: 1980 group stage, West Germany 3-2 Netherlands
Klaus Allofs was the top scorer of the 1980 Euro Championship. His hat-trick gave West Germany its second successive group stage win and the nation went on to win the title.
Allofs struck in the 20th, 60th and 65th minute and completed his hat-trick in 45 minutes.
Michel Platini: 1984 group stage, France 5-0 Belgium
The 1984 Euro was Michel Platini’s tournament. Captain of the title-winning French side, he scored nine goals in five games.
After a 1-0 victory against Denmark in its tournament opener, France whitewashed Belgium with five goals out of which Platini scored three in the fourth, 74th and 89th with his left foot, right foot and head respectively. This made it a ‘perfect hat-trick.’ Platini scored the hat-trick over the course of 85 minutes.
Michel Platini: 1984 group stage, France 3-2 Yugoslavia
Platini scored his next hat-trick just three days later against Yugoslavia, which makes him the only player to score two hat-tricks in a single campaign to date.
Overturning a 1-0 deficit, he struck in the 59th, 62nd and 77th minute to make it 3-1 and took just 18 minutes to do so.
Marco van Basten: 1988 group stage, England 1-3 Netherlands
Van Basten did not start for the Netherlands in its 1-0 defeat to the Soviet Union in the tournament opener but got the nod for the next match against England.
He repaid manager Rinus Michel’s faith by powering his side to a dominating win over England. Assisted by AC Milan teammate Ruud Gullit for all three goals, Van Basten scored in the 44th, 71 and 75th minute and completed his hat-trick in 31 minutes.
Sergio Conceicao: 2000 group stage, Portugal 3-0 Germany
It was a dead-rubber match for Portugal as it had already qualified for the last eight but Lothar Matthaus was playing his 150th and final match for Germany.
Sergio Conceicao made the most of the opportunity as he found the net in the 35th, 54th and 71st minute.
Patrick Kluivert: 2000 quarter-finals, Netherlands 6-1 Yugoslavia
Utter domination by the Netherlands, Patrick Kluivert played his part by scoring a hat-trick in 30 minutes as Yugoslavia found it impossible to handle his pace.
Assisted by Dennis Bergkamp, Edgar Davids and Boudewijn Zenden, he scored in the 24th, 38th and 54th minute and helped the Netherlands cruise into the semifinal.
David Villa: 2008 group stage, Spain 4-1 Russia
The 2008 Euro was a memorable tournament for David Villa. Part of a vibrant and artistic Spanish unit, Villa showed his prowess in front of goal against Russia as he found the net three times in the 20th, 44th and 75th minute. Spain went on to win the tournament that year.
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