In the history of the Premier League, only 35 players have managed to score a “perfect hat-trick,” a feat that requires a player to score with their left foot, right foot, and head in a single match. The most recent player to achieve this rare accomplishment is Manchester City’s Erling Haaland, who completed the hat-trick against Nottingham Forest in August 2022.

Haaland’s hat-trick was particularly impressive as it came just days after his first in a 4-2 victory over Crystal Palace. His achievement was part of a stellar season in which he quickly established himself as one of the Premier League’s most dominant forwards. Haaland’s feat further highlights how challenging it is to score a perfect hat-trick in today’s competitive football landscape.

While Haaland is among the elite, his name is not alone on this prestigious list. Another player from Manchester City, Raheem Sterling, also achieved a perfect hat-trick in the 2021-2022 season, when he scored three goals against Norwich City in his final campaign at the Etihad Stadium.

Interestingly, some of the players on this list might not immediately spring to mind when thinking about Premier League stars. For instance, cult hero Kevin Nolan is among those who have managed a perfect hat-trick, as well as former Wigan Athletic midfielder Jordi Gomez, showing that it’s not just the big names who have earned this honor.

Some players have done it multiple times, with Robbie Fowler leading the charge by scoring three perfect hat-tricks during his time at Liverpool, including one against Southampton in 1993. Yakubu and Sergio Agüero are also in the exclusive club with two perfect hat-tricks each. Agüero’s two came in 2015 and 2018, further cementing his legacy as one of the Premier League’s all-time great strikers.

A look at the full list of players who’ve scored a perfect hat-trick in the Premier League reveals a mix of household names and lesser-known figures, making the feat even more special. Here are the key players who have achieved this remarkable accomplishment:

• Mark Robins – Norwich City vs Oldham Athletic (1992)
• Efan Ekoku – Norwich City vs Everton (1993)
• Robbie Fowler – Liverpool vs Southampton (1993), Arsenal (1995), Southampton (1999)
• Matt Le Tissier – Southampton vs Norwich City (1994)
• Chris Sutton – Blackburn Rovers vs Coventry City (1994)
• Tommy Johnson – Aston Villa vs Wimbledon (1995)
• Andy Cole – Manchester United vs Ipswich Town (1995)
• Gianluca Vialli – Chelsea vs Barnsley (1997)
• Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – Manchester United vs Everton (1999)
• Emile Heskey – Liverpool vs Derby County (2000)
• Les Ferdinand – Tottenham Hotspur vs Leicester City (2000)
• Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink – Chelsea vs Tottenham Hotspur (2002)
• Thierry Henry – Arsenal vs West Ham United (2003)
• Peter Crouch – Liverpool vs Arsenal (2007)
• Yakubu – Everton vs Fulham (2007), Swansea City (2011)
• Mikael Forssell – Birmingham City vs Tottenham Hotspur (2008)
• Gabriel Agbonlahor – Aston Villa vs Manchester City (2008)
• Emmanuel Adebayor – Arsenal vs Blackburn Rovers (2008)
• Salomon Kalou – Chelsea vs Stoke City (2010)
• Didier Drogba – Chelsea vs Wigan Athletic (2010)
• Louis Saha – Everton vs Blackpool (2011)
• Edin Dzeko – Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur (2011)
• Demba Ba – Newcastle United vs Stoke City (2011)
• Pavel Pogrebnyak – Fulham vs Wolverhampton Wanderers (2012)
• Jordi Gomez – Wigan Athletic vs Reading (2012)
• Kevin Nolan – West Ham United vs Reading (2013)
• Romelu Lukaku – West Bromwich Albion vs Manchester United (2013)
• Jonathan Walters – Stoke City vs Queens Park Rangers (2015)
• Steven Naismith – Everton vs Chelsea (2015)
• Riyad Mahrez – Leicester City vs Swansea City (2015)
• Sergio Aguero – Manchester City vs Newcastle United (2015), (2018)
• Christian Pulisic – Chelsea vs Burnley (2019)
• Ollie Watkins – Aston Villa vs Liverpool (2020)
• Raheem Sterling – Manchester City vs Norwich City (2022)
• Erling Haaland – Manchester City vs Nottingham Forest (2022)

The fact that no player has achieved a perfect hat-trick since Haaland’s 2022 feat emphasizes the rarity of such an accomplishment. It serves as a testament to the precision, skill, and versatility required to score with both feet and the head in a single match.

The perfect hat-trick is not just a remarkable statistical achievement but a showcase of a player’s all-around attacking ability. While some of the biggest names in football, such as Cristiano Ronaldo and Mohamed Salah, have never completed this feat in the Premier League, others like Haaland, Aguero, and Fowler have proven just how difficult it is to tick all the boxes and make history. As the Premier League continues to evolve, it remains to be seen who will next join this exclusive club.