Valencia were 1:2 up at half time but the visitors were severely weakened just before the break after Georgian goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili handled the ball outside the penalty area and was subsequently sent off.
With a man advantage at the beginning of the second period Barca smelt blood and Lewandowski grabbed his first with a glancing header from an Ilkay Gundogan corner in the 49th minute.
In the 82nd minute, substitute keeper Jaume Domenech flapped at another inswinger corner and the Polish captain pounced in a predatory fashion, steering the ball into the vacant net with his head.
The legendary striker completed his
hat-trick deep into added time to put the game to bed, with a long-range free kick that curled beyond the despairing dive of Domenech.
That was his 16th goal in the league, leaving him three behind Girona’s Artem Dovbyk with five matches left of the season in the
race for the Pichichi (La Liga’s top scorer trophy). Poland’s number nine took the award last season with 23 goals.
Lewandowski is the second Pole, after Jan Urban, to score three goals in a La Liga match. The former Osasuna striker scored a hattrick in the 1990/91 season, when his team beat Real Madrid 4:0.
Real Madrid are firmly on course to take the La Liga title on 84 points. Second-placed Barcelona are on 73 points, while this season's surprise package, Girona are hot on their heels on 71 points.
