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The group stages of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in the UEFA zone have officially come to an end.
The ten group winners— Germany, Denmark, The Netherlands, Serbia, Switzerland, Spain, England, Croatia, France and Belgium— have sealed their place at the Qatar showpiece in 2022.
Next March, 12 teams will face off for the final three spots, including powerhouses Portugal and Italy.
It's been a rollercoaster campaign to say the least, with 763 goals scored in 250 group matches: an average of three per game! Hundreds of players managed to get themselves on the scoresheet, but only a few managed to score hat-tricks.
In this list, we'll take a look at all 12 players who scored thrice in a single game for their respective national sides:
#12 Adam Buksa (Poland) vs San Marino
You'd normally expect Robert Lewandowski to be the Polish player on this particular list, but despite netting eight goals for his side, none of them came in the form of a hat-trick.
That honor goes instead to Adam Buksa, who scored twice in stoppage-time to complete his treble against San Marino, as Poland thrashed the minnows 7-1 on the road in September.
#11 Ondrej Duda (Slovakia) vs Malta
Slovakia's wait for a first World Cup appearance since 2010 continued after the side finished third in Group H behind Croatia and Russia. However, they were at least able to cap off their campaign on a high.
The Falcons thrashed Malta 6-0 on the road on the final day, inspired by a hat-trick from Ondrej Duda; his first in national colors. He's also the first Slovakian player to net a treble since Filip Sebo in 2006, also against Malta.
#10 Tomas Soucek (Czech Republic) vs Estonia
The Czech Republic could only secure a third-place finish in Group E despite starting their campaign with a 6-2 drubbing of Estonia, a match which saw Tomas Soucek bag a hat-trick.
It wasn't just an ordinary hat-trick either. The West Ham star scored a 'perfect hat-trick', becoming the first player to net thrice for his side in a competitive game since 2009.
#9 Enis Bardhi (North Macedonia) vs Armenia
Following their Euro debut earlier this year, North Macedonia continued their fairytale run on the international stage by qualifying for the World Cup play-offs.
North Macedonia scored an impressive 23 times in the campaign, with three players netting four goals each and Enis Bardhi striking a hat-trick in the 5-0 drubbing of Armenia.
#8 Burak Yilmaz (Turkey) vs The Netherlands
The first hat-trick of the European qualifers came from Turkish striking great Burak Yilmaz against The Netherlands, the strongest side in Group G on paper.
It was also the first of his international career, and he became the first Turkish player to net thrice in a game since Umut Bulut in 2013 (versus Andorra).
#7 Gareth Bale (Wales) vs Belarus
Wales qualified for the World Cup play-offs for the first time since 1958 as they look to end their long wait to make an appearance in the tournament.
Top-scorer Gareth Bale only struck thrice in the campaign, with all of them coming in Wales' 3-2 victory over Belarus.
#6 Eran Zahavi (Israel) vs Faroe Islands
Israel once again failed to qualify for the World Cup despite a fairly good run in the qualifiers. Both of Group F's top scorers are Israeli— Mu'nas Dabbur and Eran Zahavi.
The latter struck eight times, including a hat-trick away to the Faroe Islands in September. It was his fourth in Israeli colors, all coming within the last two years alone.
#5 Erling Haaland (Norway) vs Gibraltar
Erling Haaland's campaign was blighted by an injury last month, but he still finished with five goals to his name, including a hat-trick against Gibraltar.
It came less than a year after his first treble for Norway as the Borussia Dortmund striker continues his prolific record on the international stage, which currently stands at a formidable 12 goals in 15 games.
#4 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) vs Luxembourg
Considering that he has the most hat-tricks in football history, it isn't surprising to see Cristiano Ronaldo on the list. The Manchester United forward netted thrice in his side's 5-0 demolition of Luxembourg in October.
It was his 10th hat-trick for Portugal, which is also the highest by a player on the international stage. However, his exploits were ultimately fruitless, with A Seleção losing to Serbia on the final day.
#3 Memphis Depay (The Netherlands) vs Turkey
The undisputed star of these qualifiers in the UEFA zone, Memphis Depay finished as the joint top-scorer with 12 goals, level with England's Harry Kane after bagging another goal on the final day.
His prolific tally includes four braces, and a hat-trick in the 6-0 rout of Turkey in October. This was the first time the Barcelona striker scored three in international colors, as he capped the year with 17 goals for the Netherlands.
#2 Kylian Mbappe (France) vs Kazakhstan (4)
Only two players scored four goals in World Cup qualifiers in the UEFA zone. The first was Kylian Mbappe, who took Kazakhstan to the cleaners in France's 8-0 rout.
Mbappe scored three times in the first half as the PSG ace broke numerous records on the day, and even became the first French player to score four times in a game in 64 years!
#1 Harry Kane (England) vs Albania, San Marino (4)
Harry Kane's poor form in the Premier League has much-publicised, but he looked perfectly okay in England colors, netting back-to-back hat-tricks in their last two qualifying games.
He scored a perfect hat-trick in the 5-0 demolition of Albania and followed that up with a four-goal salvo against San Marino, equaling a 96-year-old record of scoring consecutive trebles in competitive games.
