LaLiga Exclusive: Five facts you might not know about Villareal's Carlos Bacca

Carlos Bacca. Picture Courtesy/ PR

Goals and Carlos Bacca go hand in hand. The Colombian has scored 62 goals in 181 matches across his six seasons in LaLiga, the last three of which came in a memorable hat-trick against his former side.

1. Carlos was born in Puerto Colombia, five minutes from the Caribbean Sea on Colombia's northern coast. Before making the jump to professional football, Bacca worked part-time as a bus ticket salesman on the line between his hometown and Barranquilla. He would also help his father, who was a fisherman.

2. His breakthrough came at the age of 22, older than many of his contemporaries when he signed his first professional contract with Junior Barranquilla. He certainly made an impact on his debut, though. Coming on with 20 minutes to go with the game tied at 0-0, Carlos scored with his first two touches. The rest is history.

3. On the penultimate day of the 2020/21 LaLiga season, he wrote his name into the history books with a hat-trick for Villarreal CF against Sevilla FC, his former club. His three-goal haul saw him become the only player in the history of the Yellow Submarine to score three hat-tricks for the club, passing club and LaLiga legend Diego Forlan (2).

4. Carlos has spoken on many occasions of his love for Colombian food, in particular his mother's cooking and shrimp!

5. He was awarded the Barranquilla City Medal at the Colombian embassy in Madrid in 2014, in recognition of his sporting achievements and how he is an example for future generations of Colombians.

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