Why Cucho Hernandez's second career hat trick is a 'big step' for the Crew striker
Cucho Hernandez knows his performance Wednesday night was special.
With three goals in the Crew’s playoff-clinching, 3-0 win against Chicago Fire FC, Hernandez did something only one other Crew player (Stern John in 1999) had ever done – record two hat tricks in the same season.
With three goals in the first 23 minutes of play. It was the second-fastest hat trick in MLS history behind Nashville FC midfielder Hany Mukhtar, who recorded three goals in 15:24 against Chicago in 2021.
As he walked off the pitch in the 70th minute, Hernandez slowed down. He waved to the crowd. He hugged Christian Ramirez as he checked in.
His night done, he relished the moment. Something was different. Something in his play, he said, was only starting to begin.
“As the goals come, you start to feel it,” Hernandez said through a team translator. “You start to feel the stride, you start to feel the confidence.”
Diego Rossi left Turkey to sign with the Crew at the beginning of August, and the two have been building a connection since. That showed this week.
Their back-and-forth passing created enough pressure to force Chicago goalkeeper Chris Brady to come out and contest a Rossi shot. The resulting collision led to a penalty kick by Hernandez.
“We make a lot of good things (happen) on the pitch,” Rossi said.
Hernandez connected on another penalty kick after a foul on Yaw Yeboah in the box. Then Hernandez headed a Julian Gressel corner kick into the back left corner of the net.
Crew coach Wilfried Nancy said he sees Hernandez making an effort to “be on the same page at the right moment” with his teammates, and that is leading to an uptick in goals – seven in Hernandez's last three games after scoring six in his first 19 games with the club.
This run has catapulted Hernandez up the list of MLS goal scorers, and he now sits just two behind the league's leader, Nashville FC midfielder Mukhtar, who has 15 goals in 28 games.
“This is a big step with Cucho in terms of (trying) to believe in himself and to trust, also, his teammates,” Nancy said. “That's why tonight he was spot on. It was good, and he deserved it. He deserved it.”
And while Hernandez knows his team has already clinched a playoff spot, he believes there is work still to be done.
“I never try to get relaxed,” he said. “Even if we reached our goal, there’s still five games ahead of us. We have to play good and get the result to get higher in the conference table. But I never try to relax. I always try to stay hungry.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Cucho Hernandez finds confidence after second hat trick for Crew
