Houssem Aouar has written his name into Al Ittihad history after becoming the first foreign player to score a hat-trick for the club in the AFC Champions League Elite.
The Algerian star struck three times in the 7–0 demolition of Qatar’s Al Gharafa in Jeddah, a result that sealed Al Ittihad’s place in the knockout stages with a game to spare. His goals arrived in the 20th, 58th and 79th minutes, wrapping up a complete attacking performance from the Jeddah giants.
Aouar’s treble takes his tally in this season’s competition to five, making him Al Ittihad’s top scorer in Asia so far. Stats outlet Opta confirmed he is the first non-Saudi to net a Champions League hat-trick for the club and only the fourth player ever to do so, after Marzouk Al Otaibi in 2004 and Naif Hazazi and Mohammed Noor in 2009.
Opta also noted that Aouar is the first Al Ittihad player to directly contribute to four goals in a single match since such data began in 2013, underlining his growing status among the club’s modern greats.
