Southampton's Sadio Mane blasted the quickest hat-trick in Premier League history as the Senegal winger netted three times in less than three minutes against Aston Villa on Saturday.

Mane took just two minutes and 56 seconds to demolish Villa at St. Mary's and surpass the previous record of four minutes and 33 seconds set by Liverpool striker Robbie Fowler against Arsenal in 1994.

The 23-year-old was shocked when told of his achievement in a post-match interview with BT Sport.

"Really? It is the fastest Premier League hat-trick? The most important thing today is the victory," he said after Southampton's 6-1 win.

"We have a great team and last week (losing to Leicester City) was not easy but we have to work hard every game."

Saints boss Ronald Koe-man saluted Mane's efforts, saying: "It was incredible from Sadio Mane. A player like him, to get that kind of space, he will punish you.

"I didn't expect that first half. We played fantastic football and had good movement and players running into space.

"The whole team did a good job and I am proud."

Mane started his record-breaking spree in the 13th minute when he tapped into an empty net after getting a fortunate deflection as he tried to round Villa goalkeeper Shay Given.

Just 84 seconds later, Mane struck again when he latched onto a sloppy back pass from Villa defender Ron Vlaar and slotted past Given.

And he completed his remarkable feat with a fine first-time finish into the top corner from the edge of the penalty area.

Although Mane made Premier League history, he could not break the record for the fastest treble in English soccer, which was set by James Hayter when he scored three times in two minutes and 20 seconds after coming on as an 84th-minute substitute for Bourne-mouth in its third-tier match against Wrexham in 2004.

(China Daily 05/18/2015 page20)