FC Dallas star Pepi becomes youngest hat-trick scorer in MLS history

FC Dallas striker Ricardo Pepi became the youngest player in MLS history to net a hat-trick on Saturday as the teenager led the way in a one-sided win over the LA Galaxy.

Pepi netted three of FC Dallas' four goals in the 4-0 win over the Galaxy, with each of the striker's finishes coming within 50 minutes.

As a result, at 18 years and 196 days old, Pepi broke a record previously held by former Vancouver Whitecaps attacker Kekuta Manneh, who scored a hat-trick of his own at  18 years and 283 days old.

Pepi's big night

The teenager's first goal came in the 27th minute, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead over the visiting Galaxy. Played through by Andres Ricaurte, Pepi took a perfect touch towards goal to set up a simple finish to make it 1-0.

His second came just moments before halftime as he nodded down a corner kick before rocketing a shot across goal, while his third, scored a few minutes into the second half, saw him turn before placing a shot into the lower corner to complete his historic hat-trick.

With the three goals, Pepi now has eight goals in just 782 minutes played this season.

Only two players in MLS have scored more goals than Pepi: Seattle Sounders star Raul Ruidiaz and LA Galaxy striker Javier 'Chicharito' Hernandez.

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