"He learned from Messi", "Football heritage" - Fans react as Argentine star Valentin Castellanos scores four goals for Girona against Real Madrid
Argentine striker Valentin Castellanos has stunned the football world with four goals for Girona against the mighty Real Madrid in their ongoing La Liga clash. The stunning performance sparked a Twitter frenzy, as fans couldn't help but draw comparisons between the Girona forward and his compatriot Lionel Messi.
Girona came flying out of the traps against Madrid as Castellanos, affectionately known as Taty, put two goals past the visitors within the first 25 minutes of the match. Castellanos is on loan at Girona from MLS club New York City FC.
Vinicius Junior managed to claw one back before the break, but Girona's dominance was far from over. Real Madrid's hopes of a comeback were shattered as Castellanos completed his hat-trick in the 46th minute, making it 3-1 and putting the game seemingly out of reach for Los Blancos.
Castellanos scored his fourth in the 62nd minute as he met a deflected cross in the penalty area and powered it in with a header.
Twitter exploded with praise for Castellanos' performance:
Real Madrid reduced the deficit to two goals as Lucas Vazquez scored in the 85th minute. Los Blancos are desperately looking for a way back into the game to keep their slim hopes of claiming the La Liga title alive.
"Girona play some beautiful football" - Real Madrid head coach Carlo Ancelotti
Ahead of their clash against Girona, Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that his squad was raring to go for their crucial La Liga encounter. Los Blancos were eager to secure back-to-back victories after defeating Celta Vigo 2-0 at the Santiago Bernabeu on Sunday. However, things have not gone to plan as they are currently losing 4-2 to Girona.
Ancelotti praised lauded Girona's style of play before the game, saying (via Complete Sports):
"Girona play some beautiful football and they are a well organised team without the ball."
The manager was certainly not wrong as they have dealt Los Blancos a heavy blow. Ancelotti will now be looking to pick up his squad after a potentially demoralizing defeat, as he will wonder what went wrong for his side, who were the favorites to win.