Jadon Sancho returned to Borussia Dortmund’s startling line-up for their game against Paderborn on Sunday, and he didn’t disappointment.The England international scored three goals as Dortmund returned to winning ways in style.Three goals… that’s a hat-trick, right?Well, not quite.Due to a rule in Germany, Sancho’s three goals aren’t classed as a legitimate hat-trick.That’s because his three strikes weren’t scored without any other player scoring between them.The 20-year-old scored Dortmund’s second and third goals, but their fourth goal was scored by Achraf Hakimi and their fifth by Marcel Schmelzer.Sancho scored in injury-time to complete the win but because his goals weren’t scored consecutively, it doesn’t count as a hat-trick in Germany.
The same thing happened to Erling Haaland when he scored three goals on his Dortmund debut against Augsburg in January.
German journalist Raphael Honigstein explained the situation at the time.
“In Germany, for some reason, we don't consider this a proper hat-trick,” Honigstein told BBC Radio 5 live, per the Mirror.
"It needs to be in one half, but also, nobody scoring in between.
"We are so German we don't consider it a hat-trick."
Sancho will be counting it, though.
