From the time he broke through the ranks at Ajax, Justin Kluivert has always been known more as the 'son of Patrick' than just 'Justin'. It was only natural considering who said Patrick was -- centre-forward extraordinaire (most prolifically for Ajax and Barcelona, and the Dutch national team) -- and given the way his career was following a familiar trajectory: a talented but journeyman footballing son of an A-list footballing father.
The stats back this up. Before this season, Justin had played 285 games and scored 65 goals for Ajax, Roma, RB Leipzig, OGC Nice, Valencia, and Bournemouth. He had hit double digits in a league season just once (at Ajax, with 10). Patrick, on the other hand, had 206 goals in 480 games for Ajax, AC Milan, Barcelona, Newcastle United, Valencia, PSV Eindhoven and LOSC Lille and scored 15 or more league goals in seven seasons (five for Barca, twice for Ajax). Patrick also had a sensational record for the national team with 40 goals in 79 matches. Justin's played for the Netherlands thrice and hasn't yet scored.
So, when he rocked up to St. James' Park this weekend, the narrative was just that: the son of a superstar who had once donned Newcastle black-and-white briefly was returning... and wouldn't cause them much bother. It wasn't just that Justin Kluivert wasn't perceived as a great threat, but also the state of the two teams -- Newcastle were the form side in the division having won their last seven games, while Justin was one of only 12 senior players Bournemouth had fit and available for selection.
Newcastle, though, should have paid a little more attention to Justin Kluivert and Bournemouth. In the sixth minute, he ran onto an Antoine Semenyo cutback and swept it into goal at the far post with his left foot. Newcastle equalised, but a minute before half-time, Dango Outtara fed Justin between the lines, and with a finish prime Patrick would have been proud of, he struck it first-time, a snap hit with his right that was too good for Martin Dubravka in the Newcastle goal.
In the 92nd minute, he made this St James outing a special one, picking up a Tyler Adams interception and from a good 25 yards out, curl-smashed it home.
A left-footed sweep of a finish from the left side of the box, a right-footed snapshot from the other side, and a long-ranger of brutal power. It was a remarkable hattrick, and importantly for the team, a stunning way to seal the three points against heavily-favoured opposition. [Four minutes later, Justin would also feed Milos Kerkez for Bournemouth to make it 4-1].
"I heard I had more goals than him here already [Patrick scored just one home goal for Newcastle], so that is one win over him," he would say after the match. "I followed Newcastle when I was younger - unfortunately for them, the Kluivert now plays for another team."
Unfortunate indeed if you're a Magpies fan, because this is starting to shape up as a defining season for the young Dutchman. An ideal modern #10, Andoni Iraola seems to have unlocked the best of him, using his short passing ability, pressing intensity and clever movement as the fulcrum of his attacking plans.
Justin had already scored a hattrick in 24/25 -- a hattrick of penalties against Wolves (the first ever player to score three pens in a game in the Premier League) -- but this hit different.
He's already matched his career best league goal tally (10) and there's a way to go. This hattrick shows there is... As the ball hammered into the Newcastle net for a third time on Saturday via the boot of Justin Kluivert, it felt like a proper coming-of-age moment. It felt like the son stepping out -- slowly but surely -- from under his father's great shadow.
And for that, Justin Kluivert takes our Moment of the Weekend.