CanMNT winger Tajon Buchanan stars with hat trick for Villarreal vs. Girona in La Liga action - ICYMI

In ICYMI, Alexandre Gangue-Ruzic dives deeper into the individual performances of the CanMNT and CanWNT players playing abroad. 

Tajon Buchanan had a statement performance for Villarreal on Sunday, as the Canadian winger scored a hat trick in a 5-0 rout of Girona in La Liga action. 

Making his first start of the 2025-2026 season for Villarreal after joining the club permanently this summer, Buchanan picked up where he left off at the end of 2024-2025, where he had found a bit of form while on loan with the Spanish club from Italian giants Inter Milan. 

Having finished his 13-game loan with a goal and assist in his last two games, with the goal coming against La Liga champions Barcelona and the assist coming vs. Sevilla, that convinced Villarreal to bring him in on a transfer before the start of this new campaign. 

Safe to say that decision looks like it could be a shrewd one when seeing how Buchanan looked vs. Girona, as he put up a performance for the ages to really jumpstart this next chapter in his career.

Starting at right wing in their 4-4-2, he had an extra point to prove, too, as he had started Villarreal’s La Liga opener on the bench, playing 44 minutes as a substitute in a 2-0 win vs. Real Oviedo a week earlier. 

Clearly, that motivation proved to be quite important to him, as he didn’t wait long to score his first goal vs. Girona.  It came from a stunning individual effort, too, as he nutmegged a defender before roofing a shot from an extremely tight angle to put his team up 2-0 in just the 16th minute. 

GOAL 🇨🇦

TAJON BUCHANAN with an incredible bit of individual skill scores for Villarreal 😎

🎥 @TSN_Sports / #CanMNT

pic.twitter.com/8xLZNQzaHU

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) August 24, 2025

Then, moments later, he did well to nab his second with a well-timed run into the box, as he reacted first to a loose ball to put his team up 4-0 in the 28th minute. 

GOAL 🇨🇦 🇨🇦

TAJON BUCHANAN CAN’T STOP SCORING 😎

Here’s his 2nd for Villarreal on the day vs. Girona 🎯

🎥 @TSN_Sports / #CanMNT pic.twitter.com/5SuJ1fNvD3

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) August 24, 2025

Eventually, he finished the hat trick in style in the 68th minute, as he ran in behind Girona’s defence and fired a shot so powerful that Girona’s goalkeeper, Vladyslav Krapyvtsov, was left helpless as it flew through his wrists and into the goal for the hat trick. 

GOAL 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

And just like that, it's a La Liga HAT-TRICK for #CanMNT star Tajon Buchanan ✨

Another day, another milestone for a Canadian footballer ✅

🎥 @TSN_Sports
pic.twitter.com/CHiG5q7TtJ

— OneSoccer (@onesoccer) August 24, 2025

Overall, though, Buchanan will be pleased that his impact on the game extended far beyond his hat trick, which only served as a fitting way to seal his performance. 

Not only was he extremely clinical, scoring those three goals on just four shots, but he was reliable in possession, completing 22 out of 26 passes (85%), and also creating a chance.

Buchanan's heatmap from this game (SofaScore)

Then, as he does when at his best, he was an unstoppable force when he decided to run at defenders with the ball at his feet - he completed all five of his dribbles, which allowed him to make a game-high nine touches in the opposing box, while winning two fouls for good measure.

Buchanan's dribbles (left) and progressive carries (right) from this game (WyScout)

Plus, as a bonus, Buchanan didn’t cheat on any of his defensive responsibilities, either, despite the score - he made one interception and three recoveries while also winning eight out of 11 duels. 

Yet, this sort of performance has been coming for Buchanan, who has now scored eight goals and added two assists in his last 10 games for club and country. Thanks to his strong end to the season with Villarreal, he looked like a new player for the CanMNT this summer, scoring four goals and adding an assist in six games - including three goals in four games at the 2025 Gold Cup. 

2 - @VillarrealCFen's Tajon Buchanan has become the second Canadian player to score a hat-trick in Europe's top five leagues in the 21st century, after Jonathan David with Lille in Ligue 1 (three). Surprise. pic.twitter.com/nl1FH75UTL

— OptaJose (@OptaJose) August 24, 2025

That’s huge, as he hadn’t generated a goal contribution for Canada since the 2022 World Cup, where he was the team’s breakout star, setting the foundation for his eventual move to Inter. 

Now, he’s once again back to his best after a period marred by inconsistency, injury and a lack of playing time, and that’s good news for both Villarreal and Canadian fans, both of whom will be excited to see Buchanan build off this remarkable performance.

He’ll be in tough to score a hat trick and stay atop the La Liga Golden Boot race every week, but he’ll hope to be a consistent source of offence, helping Villarreal push up the table and make a run in the Champions League starting this fall - perhaps doing so alongside CanMNT forward Tani Oluwaseyi, who looks set to join the club this month.

Then, starting with a pair of friendlies next month vs. Romania and Wales, Buchanan also has a huge role to play for Canada over the next 10 months leading into the World Cup, where he’s expected to be a key player for Jesse Marsch’s side - as he was at the 2022 World Cup and again this summer. 

FOR A FULL UPDATE OF THE PERFORMANCES OF CANADIANS ABROAD, CHECK OUT MITCHELL TIERNEY’S FORM GUIDE.