Irons flop Zaza now second only to Messi
It took his tally to the season to nine as his team climbed into into second spot on 24 points – four behind Barcelona and four ahead of Real Madrid in third.
It means that Zaza, whose loan disaster at West Ham was cut short, is now just three strikes behind top scorer Lionel Messi in the Spanish League.
The 26 year old has claimed in the past that he didn’t settle at the Hammers for a variety of reasons but has been revitalised since moving to Spain.
He arrived at the London Stadium on a loan deal which could have led to a £25 million move but he failed to make the necessary 14 appearances required under the terms of the arrangement.
He failed to score a single goal but after being loaned out to Valencia managed six in 20 games last term before this season’s nine goal haul from 10 appearances.