Taty Castellanos scores four goals as Girona beats Real Madrid

Taty Castellanos. Pic/AFP

Girona striker Taty Castellanos became the first player to score four goals in one game against Real Madrid in La Liga since 1947 in his side's 4-2 triumph on Tuesday night.

The Argentine forward put on a lethal display of finishing to stun the champions and extinguish any hopes of defending their title against Barcelona.

Girona's Taty Castellanos celebrates one of his four goals against Real Madrid. Pic/AFP

Castellanos, on loan from MLS club New York City FC, scored two goals each in both halves to secure Girona an impressive victory over Carlo Ancelotti's side. Both Girona and New York City are sister clubs of Manchester City, who face Real Madrid in the Champions League semi-finals in May.

The last player to hit four against Madrid in La Liga was Real Oviedo's Esteban Echavarria, in 1947 - although current Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski managed the feat in the Champions League in 2013 with Borussia Dortmund. Castellanos broke the deadlock with a poacher's header and drilled the second through Madrid goalkeeper Andriy Lunin's legs. The forward pounced again after just 36 seconds in the second half to complete his hat-trick, and easily escaped Madrid defender Eder Militao to nod in the fourth from close range. Castellanos departed to a standing ovation when he was replaced in the 72nd minute. "It was a dream night, we had a great game against one of the best teams in the world," Castellanos said.

Also Read: Big wins for Barcelona, Real Madrid

"I never imagined this. [I'm] enjoying it with our fans, with the people who have sent me support - my family, people in Argentina," added Castellanos, who won the MLS Golden Boot in 2021 with 19 goals in 32 matches. A year ago Castellanos scored four goals for New York City against Real Salt Lake, but said his accomplishment against Madrid was on a different level. "Obviously they are different days, it was a dream to score against Madrid," said Castellanos, who has 11 goals in 29 La Liga games this season.

"Taty was very good apart from the goals when it came to his work. I'm happy for him," said Girona coach Michel.

1947
The last time a player scored 4 goals in a match v Real Madrid

This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever