Mastantuono hat trick spurs Fiorentina to first win in Serie A and Rennes tops Ligue 1
Franco Mastantuono's hat trick has given Fiorentina its first win in Serie A
Rennes and Sevilla maintained their promising starts in Ligue 1 and La Liga, Fiorentina got its first win in Serie A, and Schalke beat Union Berlin 3-1 in a Bundesliga match where the referee was replaced on Friday.
Ref injured and Schalke unstoppable
Both teams had just one point after their first two Bundesliga matches but newly promoted Schalke went home happiest thanks in part to a fine goalkeeping display from player of the match Loris Karius.
Robin Gosens opened the scoring for Schalke with an angled volley and Aouchiche doubled their lead moments after the break with a superbly taken strike.
Karius held Berlin at bay for much of the second period and though he could not stop Tim Skarke from scoring in the sixth minute of added time, Maximilian Wober restored Schalke’s two-goal lead with almost the last kick of the game.
The match was notable for the substitution of referee Timo Gerach early in the second half. Gerach complained of a sore calf and was replaced by fourth official Jarno Wienefeld, an experienced Bundesliga 2 referee who took charge of his first top tier game.
Mastantuono grabs hat trick
Venezia and Fiorentina lost their first three Serie A games and the home side drew first blood when Akor Adams put Venezia ahead in the 22nd minute with a nice right-foot finish after good leadup work from American midfielder Gianluca Busio.
However, Franco Mastantuono broke forward in the 29th and 30th to give Fiorentina a halftime lead.
Mateo Pellegrino made it 3-1 midway through the second with his second goal in two games and Mastantuono got his hat trick six minutes from time.
Antoine Hainaut scored a late second for Venezia but the defeat left it pointless and at the bottom of the 20-team table. Fiorentina moved into 15th.
Valencia lose again to stay last
Sevilla moved into joint second in La Liga with a late 1-0 win over struggling Valencia.
A poor game produced few real chances but the home side finally broke the deadlock with nine minutes remaining. Giorgi Kochorashvili’s deep cross from the left was met by Juan Antonio Iglesias, whose header looped in over the keeper.
Valencia, which didn't put a shot on target, was bottom of the table with one point from a possible 15.
Rennes win third in a row
Rennes went to the top of Ligue 1 after beating Marseille 1-0.
Recent signing from Lens Adrien Thomasson got his first goal for the club six minutes into the second half to guarantee a third win on the bounce for the Breton side.
Marseille is suffering its worst start to the league in more than 20 years. The latest defeat was its third in a row and it sits in 11th place with three points.
Rennes rose to one point above Monaco.
Hammers thrash Wrexham
In England, West Ham went to the top of the Championship table after crushing Wrexham 6-0.
Six different West Ham players got on the scoresheet in a win that lifted it a point above West Bromwich Albion.
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