Dortmund Star Breaks Several African Records With Champions League Hat-Trick Against Barcelona
- Serhou Guirassy scored an incredible hat-trick against Barcelona in the Champions League, delivering one of the most memorable individual performances of the tournament
- His treble shattered multiple African records, including becoming the first African player to score a hat-trick in the quarter-finals
- Despite his heroics, Borussia Dortmund were eliminated from the tournament, falling short on aggregate after losing heavily in the first leg
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Serhou Guirassy delivered a historic performance by scoring a record-breaking hat-trick as Borussia Dortmund defeated Barcelona 3-1 in their Champions League quarter-final second leg on Tuesday.
The Guinean striker found the net three times to power Dortmund past the Spanish giants on the night, but it wasn’t enough to overturn their 4-0 first-leg deficit, and Barcelona advanced to the semi-finals with a 5-3 aggregate win.
Source: Getty Images
Guirassy breaks Champions League records
Guirassy’s hat-trick etched his name into the history books, making him the first African player to score a treble in the Champions League quarter-finals or beyond, per Goal.
The 29-year-old also set a new benchmark with 13 goals in a single Champions League campaign — the most ever by an African player — and became the first African to net three times against Barcelona in the competition.
It surpassed the tallies of Robert Lewandowski and Erling Haaland, whose highest Champions League goal totals for Dortmund stood at just ten in a single campaign.
Lewandowski reached the milestone in the 2012/13 season, while Haaland matched it during the 2020/21 campaign.
Guirassy on leading UCL scorers' chart
“It’s an amazing feeling to be the top scorer in the Champions League, especially among so many incredible players. Leading the charts shows I’m a strong finisher, but none of it would be possible without the support of my teammates—I can’t achieve this on my own," Guirassy said after the match.
Source: Getty Images
Guirassy's record at Dortmund
Guirassy has been in sensational form, scoring 28 goals in 29 appearances across all competitions for Dortmund, per talkSPORT.
He has now tallied 15 Champions League goals in total, with two of those coming from four appearances for Rennes during the 2020/21 season.
The forward joined Dortmund last summer from Stuttgart in a deal worth around £15.4 million, after finishing as runner-up to Harry Kane in the Bundesliga Golden Boot race with an impressive 28 goals.
What's next for Dortmund and Barcelona?
Despite his individual brilliance, Dortmund's European journey ends here, while Barcelona move on to face either Bayern Munich or Inter Milan in the semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Dortmund will aim to bounce back in the Bundesliga when they face Borussia Monchengladbach this weekend.
Vinicius warns of resurgence against Partey's Arsenal
Meanwhile, YEN.com.gh reported that Vinicius Jr warned Arsenal ahead of their Champions League second-leg tie in Madrid.
The 24-year-old had a quiet outing as the Gunners outclassed the Spanish giants in the first encounter, but said their comeback would be fierce.
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Proofreading by Samuel Gitonga, copy editor at YEN.com.gh.
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Isaac Darko (Sports Editor) Isaac Darko is a Sports Editor at Yen, boasting over 10 years of experience in the media industry. He has produced award-winning TV shows such as "Football 360" and "Sports XTRA" on ViaSat 1/Kwese TV. Isaac began his career as an Assistant Producer at TV3 Ghana Limited (Media General) and also contributed as a Writer and Weekend Editor for Pulse Ghana. He earned his bachelor's degree in Communication Studies from the Ghana Institute of Journalism (now University of Media, Arts and Communication). Email: isaac.darko@sportsbrief.com.
Samuel Gitonga (Copy editor) Samuel Gitonga is a Copy Editor at YEN.com.gh. He holds a Bachelor of Broadcast Journalism Degree from the Multimedia University of Kenya. He has over 7 years’ experience in the digital journalism industry. He started out his career at the Kenya News Agency and proceeded to work for several reputable media outlets in Nairobi.
