Winger’s 2006 Hat-Trick Against Manchester United: The First to Achieve It, But Times Have Changed!

Since the Premier League began in 1992, Manchester United players have netted 33 hat-tricks collectively, but it wasn’t until 2006 that the Red Devils conceded their first—14 years later.

In January 2006, David Bentley became the first player to score a hat-trick against Manchester United, doing so for Blackburn Rovers in a thrilling 4-3 win at Ewood Park.

Having just transitioned from Arsenal following a successful loan, Bentley still relishes sharing the story of how he managed to breach Manchester United‘s seemingly invulnerable defense three times during the Premier League era.

David Bentley became the first player to hit hat-tricks against Manchester United in the Premier League

“I’d only signed for Blackburn 24 hours earlier – I’d been at Rovers on loan, but made the move permanent prior to this match,” Bentley recalls to eScored. “This was a time when Manchester United were filled with star players.

“Edwin van der Sar, Rio Ferdinand, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney were all playing that night under the lights at Ewood Park. They were terrifying at that time and had the capability to demoralize teams even before kick-off, so scoring a hat-trick was an incredible achievement.

“Several players have managed to achieve that feat against United in the Premier League since then, but I was the first. Let’s be honest, it’s much easier to score a hat-trick against them now than it was back when I did it 18 years ago!”

As Bentley points out, that Manchester United squad was on the verge of clinching three consecutive Premier League titles and a Champions League trophy in the following years, while currently, they are quite a distance from reaching those same heights.

Since Bentley’s hat-trick against Manchester United, seven other players have duplicated this feat. Dirk Kuyt scored three goals for Liverpool at Anfield in 2011, while Romelu Lukaku managed to do so for West Brom in an iconic 5-5 draw at the Hawthorns during Sir Alex Ferguson’s last match as a manager.

Samuel Eto’o scored a hat-trick for Chelsea in 2014, and Mohamed Salah also netted three goals at Old Trafford in a 5-0 rout in 2021. In 2022, Manchester City teammates Erling Haaland and Phil Foden both scored hat-tricks in the same match, with Cole Palmer completing the most recent treble at Stamford Bridge last season.