Raphinha overtakes Mbappe as La Liga top scorer with hat-trick against Santander

Barcelona forward Raphinha claimed the top spot in the La Liga scoring charts from Kylian Mbappe after netting a hat-trick against Racing Santander on Wednesday night.

Mbappe, the Paris Saint-Germain striker, had led the list with seven goals, but Raphinha capitalized on two penalties and added a third goal to bring his tally to nine, moving clear at the top of the scorers’ race.

Although Raphinha had the chance to increase his total further, he allowed teammate Lamine Yamal to take another penalty, which Yamal missed. However, Yamal made amends by scoring later in Barcelona’s emphatic 7-2 victory, bringing his own total to six goals from the first six rounds and placing him third behind Raphinha and Mbappe.

Intense race for top scorer

Meanwhile, Morocco’s Yassir Zabiri benefited from a major error by Barcelona goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny to score, though he also missed an easy chance. Zabiri now has six goals, tying with Yamal for third place.

In a separate development, Mbappe and Yamal are strong contenders for the 2026 Ballon d’Or, with the winner to be announced on October 26. Raphinha, however, was surprisingly left off the shortlist for the award.