Napoli striker Gonzalo Higuain admitted he was confident he would break the Serie A scoring record, as long as he was able to stay calm.
Higuain scored his 34th, 35th and 36th Serie A goals of 2015-16 as Napoli closed out their season with a 4-0 win over Frosinone on Saturday.
The hat-trick meant Higuain, 28, eclipsed Gunnar Nordahl's record of 35 goals in a single Serie A season, set all the way back in 1950.
Argentina international Higuain revealed he was confident of reaching the mark ahead of the final day of the 2015-16 season.
"It is an immense joy to have been able to surpass that mark," he told Mediaset post-game.
"I want to thank my family and everyone at Napoli including the team and the coaching staff.
"I feel very proud because they all helped me to reach this.
"I knew I could do it, and for that I needed to maintain calmness. In the first half I couldn't score, but after that the team helped me reach it."
Higuain singled out Napoli coach Maurizio Sarri for helping him improve his goal-scoring form this season after doubling his tally from 2014-15.
"He has helped me so much. He has explained to me how to improve, I listened and I've achieved it," he added.
"As for the Champions League qualification, this city deserves it and so do we."
...
- Goal