Real Madrid’s 21-year-old star in the making Marco Asensio contributed a hat-trick to his side’s victory over Macedonia.
The Under-21 Spain side secured a clear 5-0 victory over Macedonia. Perhaps most impressive on the night was Marco Asensio who managed to score a hat-trick. It was a very good way for the young national side to begin their European Championship campaign.
Coach Albert Celades praised Asensio’s performance and says he feels thankful to have the player available for selection. “Congratulations to Marco for his hat-trick and his effort and the commitment with which he played,” Celades tells UEFA.
“He is an example to all of us as a player who’s come from the senior national team, and from the Champions League, and who’s played with the motivation he has shown. We’re blessed to have a lad with his quality, as a footballer and a person.”
It wasn’t just that he scored a hat-trick, but the way in which he did it which prove his great level of skill. His first goal came from out a from 30 yards out. He showed great positioning for his second getting into the box and scoring into the far corner. And for his third, Asensio ran the ball up the field, from his own half, only to beat the keeper from 20 yards out.
Asensio’s career is certainly on the rise after last season. The midfielder made 38 appearances last year for Real Madrid in all competitions, earning Champions League and La Liga winner medals in the process. In May of last year, Asensio also made his debut for Spain’s full squad. There’s every reason to assume he will make the full transition shortly.
The attacking midfielder seems to have won over manager Zinedine Zidane, but he has had to fight his way to the status he now enjoys at Real. He arrived in Madrid from Mallorca in late 2014 for a fee of €3.9million. He spent the next season out on loan to Espanyol and did a good enough job there that he was called back and made part of Real’s all-star squad.
As things stand the Under-21 squad is fortunate to make use of Asensio’s talents. The youngster talked about the importance of scoring and the need for the team to move on to the next game and remain focused on their task.
“Football is about scoring goals, but this game is finished and now we have to be focused on Portugal,” Asensio tells UEFA.com. “I scored three goals and I helped my team. I’m very happy with this win. The win is important, but also the number of goals. We scored five and that’s important if we want to reach the semi-finals.”
