Martial scores Man Utd's first Premier League hat-trick in seven years

London, June 24: Anthony Martial ended Manchester United's seven-year wait for a Premier League hat-trick against Sheffield United.

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The France forward struck twice in the first half against Chris Wilder's men before wrapping up the first hat-trick of his career with a fine goal 16 minutes from time.

Martial is the first United player to score three times in a league match since Robin van Persie did so against Aston Villa in 2013.

That 3-0 win, which featured a spectacular Van Persie volley from a raking Wayne Rooney pass, secured the title for the Red Devils in Alex Ferguson's final season in charge.

Since then, United have failed to win the top-flight title, coming closest in 2017-18 under Jose Mourinho when they finished second behind runaway champions Manchester City.

A total of 21 Premier League teams have scored hat-tricks since the start of the 2013-14 season, including Sunderland - who are now in England's third tier - twice.

Martial's hat-trick took him to 19 goals in all competitions in 2019-20, two more than his previous best haul for the club.

2013 - Anthony Martial is the first Manchester United player to score a @premierleague hat-trick since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013; since the 2013-14 season, 21 different clubs have seen a player score a hat-trick in the competition before Martial's today. Hiatus. pic.twitter.com/NyNFaPuU8H

— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) June 24, 2020