Sadio Mane - Player of the Week

What record did Sadio Mane break?

The Senegalese international, Sadio Mane, broke one of the longest-standing records in Premier League history last weekend. Mane broke the record for the fastest ever Premier League hat-trick. The Southampton winger took just 176 seconds to complete his hat-trick, that's less than 3 minutes! He scored in the 13th, 14th and 16th minutes as Southampton raced into a 3-0 lead against Aston Villa. The final score was 6-1 to Southampton. The record for the fastest Premier League hat-trick had belonged to Robbie Fowler for 21 years, when he scored three goals for Liverpool against Arsenal in 273 seconds, back in 1994. Mane has smashed that record and it is a new record that will be very difficult to ever break!  

"Really? It is the fastest Premier League hat-trick? The most important thing is the victory."  Sadio Mane after his record-breaking hat-trick.

When did Mane score his goals?

Mane opened the scoring in the 13th minute at the second attempt, when his first shot was saved by the Aston Villa goalkeeper. His second arrived nearly immediately, after a mistake between the Villa goalkeeper and central defender, which let Mane put the ball into an empty net. Mane's record-breaking goal arrived just a few moments later, and was the best of the three. The ball arrived to Mane at the edge of the penalty area and Mane hit a first-time shot into the corner of the net. 

“It was incredible.”  Southampton manager - Ronald Koeman, talking about Mane's hat-trick.

Was it Southampton's biggest win of the season?

Most teams may have slowed down a little, but Southampton continued to move forward and scored two more goals before half-time, both scored by Irish international, Shane Long. Christian Benteke scored a goal for Villa, just before half-time, but it was already 5-1 and there was no way back for the FA Cup Finalists. The only surprise in the second-half was Southampton had to wait until the 81st minute to score their sixth goal, this time Graziano Pelle scored with a volley. A 6-1 scoreline would be the best result of the season for most teams, but the Saints have already won 8-0 this season, against Sunderland in October. This was also the biggest Premier League win by any team this season. This has been Southampton's best ever Premier League season and they are guaranteed to finish in the top 7, which they've never done before.

What do we know about Sadio Mane?

Sadio Mane was born on 12 April 1992 in Sedhiou, which is a town in Senegal, in West Africa. The town where Mane grew up is very small, only 15,000 people, and very remote, it is over 500 kilometres from the captial, Dakar. There were not many football facilities where Mane lived, so when he was 16 his parents decided to let him move to his Uncle's house, near Dakar. When in Dakar, he was spotted by local talent scouts and asked to play at the Generation Foot Academy, which has become one of the most famous academies in West Africa. It's the same academy where players such as Papiss Cisse (Newcastle) and Diafra Sakho (West Ham) made their names and is where Mane made his name. When he was 19, he joined French Ligue One club, FC Metz and a year later joined Red Bull Salzburg in the Austrian Bundesliga. After 2 seasons in Austria, Mane made the move to the Premier League to play for Southampton, on the south coast of England.

"Senegal have some exceptional talents but Mane is the diamond in the team."  Habib Beye, ex-Newcastle player and Senegal international.

Has Mane had a good first season in the Premier League?

Mane signed for Southampton on transfer deadline day on September 1st 2014 for £11.8 million. He has played a major role in Southampton's fantastic second season back in the Premier League and has scored 10 goals. Mane was nominated for the African Player of the Year and also played for Senegal in the Africa Cup of Nations in January. Mane has played some fantastic games for his new team, including two great games against Chelsea this season. In December, Mane scored Southampton's goal against Chelsea in a 1-1 draw and in March, Mane won the penalty and was Man of the Match at Stamford Bridge, when the Saints drew 1-1 for a second time. Chelsea captain, John Terry, later voted for Mane to be included in the PFA Team of the Season.

Can Mane's record ever be broken?

Click on talk and quiz and let us know what you think!

Did you know......?

• Sadio Mane scored his first goal for Southampton against Sunderland in an 8-0 Premier League win!
• Mane is the third Senegalese player to score a Premier League hat-trick after Henri Camara (2005 - Wigan) and Demba Ba (2011 - Newcastle).
• Mane was part of the Senegal team that drew 1-1 with Great Britain at the London Olympics.
• The Senegal national team's nickname is the Lions of Teranga.
• Senegal reached the World Cup quarter-finals in 2002, and became only the second African country to do this.