This archive report was first published on 9 December 2019.
On Sunday, Real Betis midfielder Joaquin Sanchez, 38 years and 140 days old, made history by becoming the oldest player to score a treble in La Liga. He broke the record set by Real Madrid great Alfredo di Stefano in 1964.
Sanchez's achievement is all the more impressive considering that no player in Europe's top five leagues has scored a treble at an older age. The next closest player is Claudio Pizarro in the Bundesliga, who achieved this feat at 37 years 151 days.
Sanchez's treble was part of Real Betis's 3-2 win over Athletic Bilbao. When asked about his achievement, Sanchez said, 'I've never been a great goalscorer and to score three against an opponent like this is something to be proud of. Above all at my age, don't think that it's easy.'
Meanwhile, Barcelona's Lionel Messi took the plaudits for his hat-trick against Real Mallorca on Saturday. However, the best goal of the weekend was scored by Luis Suarez, who produced a magnificent backheel effort that flew past Manolo Reina for the Catalan league leader's fourth goal.
Barcelona ran out 5-2 winners against Real Mallorca, with Suarez's goal being one of the highlights of the match. Suarez described his goal as 'the best goal of my career,' saying, 'I knew that it was a tight angle and it was a last resort to hit it with my heel. I was looking to hit it hard so it bounced as it was hard to beat the keeper.'
Real Madrid's Karim Benzema also made headlines over the weekend, scoring his 11th goal of the season in the team's 2-0 win over Espanyol. However, he struggled to find the back of the net earlier in the match, missing two clear-cut chances.
