Franco Mastantuono Makes History with Hat-Trick in Venice

Franco Mastantuono did not just light up Venice on Friday night. He tore a page out of Lionel Messi’s record book and wrote his own name across it.

The Fiorentina winger, on loan from Real Madrid, hit a stunning hat-trick at Venezia to become the youngest Argentine ever to score three times in a single match in one of Europe’s top five leagues. At 19 years and 28 days, he beat Messi’s long‑standing mark by 231 days — a record that had survived for almost two decades.

Messi’s first hat-trick came in the white heat of a Clásico against Real Madrid on 10 March 2007. Mastantuono’s came in far humbler surroundings, but the impact on Fiorentina’s season might prove just as seismic.

A 98-second turnaround

Fiorentina looked in trouble at half-time, trailing 1-0 and still searching for their first point of the new Serie A campaign. The mood around the club had been grim: three straight defeats, a goal difference of 1:9, and a summer coaching change already backfiring badly.

Then Mastantuono exploded.

Within 98 seconds of the restart in Venice, the right winger struck twice, turning a deficit into a 2-1 lead almost single-handedly. Venezia never really recovered from the shock. Every time he picked up the ball, the home defence backed off, unsure whether to close him down or simply pray.

The pressure finally told again late on. In the 84th minute, Mastantuono completed his hat-trick, killing off any lingering doubt and pushing Fiorentina 4-1 ahead. Venezia pulled one back to make it 4-2, but the points were gone, and so was Fiorentina’s early-season misery. Their first win. Their first points. A lifeline, delivered by a teenager.

Vanoli’s return, Grosso’s exit

The story of the night was Mastantuono, but the backdrop in Florence matters.

Paolo Vanoli had kept Fiorentina in Serie A last season, only to be replaced in the summer by 2006 World Cup winner Fabio Grosso. The gamble failed quickly and brutally: three games, three defeats, one goal scored, nine conceded. Fiorentina panicked, sacked Grosso, and called Vanoli back to the dugout this past week.

His first game back? Venezia away. His first gift? A 19-year-old Argentine in full flight, finally showing why Real Madrid paid so heavily for him.

Real Madrid’s €45m question

Mastantuono joined Real Madrid from River Plate in 2025 for €45 million. For that kind of fee, the expectation in Madrid was clear: a prodigy ready to grow into a star at the Bernabéu.

So far, it has not quite worked that way in Spain. Before heading to Italy, he had made 35 appearances in all competitions for Los Blancos, averaging just 42 minutes per game, with three goals and one assist. Glimpses of talent, yes, but nothing like the dominance he showed in Venice.

That is why this loan to Fiorentina, running until next summer, always felt like a crossroads. A chance to play, to make mistakes, to carry responsibility. On Friday, he did more than that. He carried a club, saved a coach’s second spell before it had really begun, and nudged a legend’s name down the record list.

Real Madrid know exactly how much Franco Mastantuono cost them: €45 million. After a night like this, the real question is how much he might be worth if this is only the beginning.