FIFA World Cup 2018: Top 5 hat-tricks in tournament history

Scoring a hat-trick is a dream for every player, but nothing can beat achieving the feat at the World Cup.

A hat-trick is the most glorious feat a player can achieve in a match. When a player sends three goals past the opposition goalkeeper on a grand stage like FIFA World Cup, its importance and value gets multiplied by a billion. 51 hat-tricks have scored in the World Cup so far.

On Friday night we saw a special magical moment from Cristiano Ronaldo when he sent a sumptuous free-kick around and over the Spanish wall straight into the net, bringing up the 51st hat-trick of the World Cup.

So, digging deep into FIFA World Cup history Khel Now presents the top five hat-tricks scored in this mega event.

5. Guillermo Stabile (Argentina- 1930 World Cup)

Getting a chance to represent the country is always a dream of every player and to score a hat-trick on debut is something any player would die for. Argentina's Guillermo Stabile scored a sumptuous hat-trick on his international debut and that too on a grand stage like the World Cup. Stabile scored his 3 goals against Mexico in a group stage game which was a goal fest. The striker's 3 goals helped Argentina to edge out Mexico 6-3.

4. Pele (Brazil- 1958 World Cup)

Watch: Pele's sumptuous hat-trick

Football legend Pele played an vital role in Brazil's triumph in the 1958 World Cup. The legendary striker was absolutely quiet in all three group stage games netting no goals. But, he came into his own in the latter half of the tournament netting his first goal in Brazil's  1-0 victory over Wales in the quarterfinals. Pele then netted a wonderful hat-trick in the semi-finals helping Brazil to beat favourites France 5-2. Another brace in the final helped the Samba Boys to seal the title beating Sweden by the same scoreline.

3. Oleg Salenko (Russia- 1994 World Cup)

Watch: Salenko's five goals

Oleg Salenko scored a beautiful hat-trick when Russia thrashed Cameroon 6-1 in a group stage game at the 1994 World Cup. Salenko not only scored a hat-trick but also became the first and only player so far to have netted five goals in a single game at the World Cup.

The striker's brilliance helped Russia to grab three vital points, but they failed to make it out of the group stages as they lost their remaining two games to Brazil and Sweden respectively.

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2. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal- 2018 World Cup)

Last night Ronaldo took in his own hands to fight against the mighty Spanish side. The Portuguese talisman calmly scored a penalty early in the match. That was followed by a lucky goal as his weak shot somehow managed to make its way through David de Gea's legs. It was the third goal which made all the headlines, as the striker scored a beautiful free-kick curling it around and over the Spanish wall and straight into the net, making the scoreline 3-3 in the last minute of regulation time.  

With this hat-trick, Ronaldo became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in the World Cup.

1. Geoff Hurst (England- 1966 World Cup)

Watch: Hurst's brilliant hat-trick in the tournament showpiece

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Geoff Hurst's individual brilliance was the difference between England and West Germany in the final of the 1966 World Cup. He netted a quality hat-trick which helped the Three Lions to beat West Germany 4-2.

The striker scored his first goal in the 18th minute and then added two late goals in injury-time to win the title for England. With this hat-trick, Hurst remains the only player to score a hat-trick in the final of the FIFA World Cup.