History maker: Man Utd's hat-trick hero Amad breaks African record held by Ighalo, Quinton Fortune

Ivory Coast international Amad Diallo made history following his hat-trick for Manchester United in a come-from-behind win against Southampton at Old Trafford on Thursday night.

The official website of the Red Devils has confirmed that Amad is the first African player to score a hat-trick for United and the only Red to net one in the Premier League at a younger age is club legend Wayne Rooney.

The 22-year-old is the third Manchester United player to score a treble from the 80th minute onwards, following in the footsteps of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Rooney.

Amad's record-breaking performance for the most goals in a single game for Manchester United made him the first African player to do so, with only Odion Ighalo and Bafana Bafana legend Quinton Fortune previously managing to score multiple goals (2) in a match.

Quinton Fortune scored a brace against South Melbourne in the 2000 Club World Championship on January 11, 2000 and later struck twice in a commanding 6-0 home win over Bradford City in September 2000.

Ighalo, the first Nigerian-born player to play an official game for Manchester United, netted a brace in a 3-0 win against Derby County in an FA Cup fifth round tie in March 2020.

The 2019 Africa Cup of Nations Golden Boot winner earned instant admiration from United fans by becoming the first Red in 95 years to score in each of his first four starts for the club.

Ighalo joined Manchester United on a five-month loan deal on deadline day in 2020 and the loan was extended before leaving for Saudi Arabian club Al Shabab in January 2021.

He scored five goals spread across twenty-three games for Manchester United and won the club's Goal of the Month award for March 2020 for his fantastic strike against LASK in the Europa League. 

Other African players who have represented Manchester United in the past include Eric Djemba-Djemba (Cameroon), Manucho (Angola), Mame Biram Diouf (Senegal), Wilfried Zaha (Ivory Coast), Eric Bailly (Ivory Coast) and Hannibal (Tunisia).

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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