Super Eagles Star Iheanacho Shares Touching Story of How his Late Mother Inspired his Famous Goal Celebration

- Kelechi Iheanacho may have revealed the reason behind his famous celebration after scoring

- The Super Eagles star said it is to honour his mother who could be watching him from heaven

- Iheanacho lost his mum after a brief illness in 2013, the same year he rose to fame at the FIFA World Cup

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Nigerian star Kelechi Iheanacho hugged the headlines after recording his first career Premier League hat-trick against Sheffield United over the weekend.

The 24-year-old grabbed his first in the 39th minute, while the remaining two came in the 69th and 78th minutes respectively.

His EPL goal tally this campaign rose to six in 16 topflight appearances after the treble and he looks forward to scoring more.

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After the match, the former youth international dedicated the three goals to all mothers in celebration of their day, he told Sky Sports and reported by Complete Sports.

“I’m going to use this opportunity to dedicate this hat-trick to all of the mothers in the world, the ones taking care of us. I wish them all a happy Mother’s Day.”

Meanwhile, Iheanacho's goal celebration is used to honour his mother every time he scores cos the attacker believes she is watching from above.

“The reason I point to heaven is because I think there is a God in heaven and also it’s for my mum, I know she’s watching when I score. So I want to show my appreciation for God and for my late mum.

“It’s a really great day for me, my family and my team-mates. I’m delighted. I’m thankful for my team-mates and the manager for helping me to get to this level, and for Jamie Vardy, he has helped me a lot.

”I have been waiting for this day to come, it’s my first hat-trick in the Premier League, and I’m delighted. Hopefully, there are many more to come in the future.”

Legit.ng earlier reported that Kelechi Iheanacho scored his first-ever Premier League hat-trick for Leicester City in their 5-0 demolition of relegation-threatened Sheffield United at the Kind Power Stadium over the weekend.

His goals came in the 39th, 69th, and 78th minutes respective to take his tally to six goals after 16 EPL matches for the Foxes so far this campaign.

He was also voted man of the match for his brilliant performances for Brendan Rodgers men as they maintain the third position on the log - five points better than fourth-place Chelsea after 29 games.

Oluwatomiwa is a sports editor with Legit.ng. He has over eight years of field and office experience in the media industry. He graduated from the Nigerian Institute of Journalism in 2014 with HND in Mass Communication. Connect with him on Twitter @TomiwaBabalola.