A Moroccan earthquake in Spain: Zabiri writes history with a hat-trick in 21 minutes
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Moroccan striker Yasser Zabiri wrote his name into Racing Santander's history early, seizing his first start to fire the club to their first win since returning to the Spanish league. His stunning hat-trick against Elche came in just 21 minutes, one of the finest individual starts this season.
He was the undisputed star of the afternoon. Three goals between the 15th and 36th minutes turned El Sardinero into a scene of celebration and handed his side a huge lift at the start of their campaign.
The first arrived in the 15th minute, when Zabiri pounced on a glaring error from goalkeeper Dituro to give Racing the lead. Six minutes later he was at it again, exploiting fresh confusion in the Elche defence with a superb strike the Argentine keeper could not stop.
Zabiri did not stop there. He completed his treble in the 36th minute with a direct finish, sparking wild celebrations in the Racing stands and stamping his mark on a first outing in the starting line-up.
On loan from France's Rennes, Zabiri had featured in only six matches during the second half of last season. One start was all he needed to announce his attacking talent.
His record at youth international level is remarkable. He was one of the heroes of Morocco's Under-20 World Cup triumph, playing a decisive role in the final with two goals that carried his country to the title.
That hat-trick against Elche shot him straight into the race for top scorer. He now shares top spot with Kylian Mbappe, Raphinha and Fermin, among the first players to bag a treble this season.
Twenty-one minutes was all it took, which leaves the door open to add to his tally before the final whistle and makes the Moroccan one of the standout names of the opening round.
Zabiri also became the fourth Moroccan player this century to score a hat-trick in the Spanish league, following compatriots Youssef En-Nesyri, Youssef El-Arabi and Mounir El Hamdaoui. His name now sits on a distinguished Moroccan list in the competition's history.
The numbers don't stop there. He is the second fastest African player this century to score a hat-trick in the Spanish league, netting his three goals inside 21 minutes, behind only Cameroon's Samuel Eto'o, who managed his against Almeria in 2008 in 19 minutes.
He wrote his name into Racing Santander's history too, becoming the first player from the club to score a hat-trick at El Sardinero in the Spanish league since Javi Guerrero, who did the same against Murcia in 2004.
