Santi Cazorla fires Real Oviedo back to La Liga

Former Arsenal midfielder Santi Cazorla has helped lead his boyhood club Real Oviedo back to La Liga after a 24-year absence.

Faced with a two-goal deficit to CD Mirandes in the La Liga 2 playoff final, Cazorla converted from the penalty to kickstart a dramatic comeback.

Trailing 1-0 following the first-leg, it got worse before it got better for Real Oviedo when Mirandes opened the scoring after 16 minutes.

Cazorla's penalty provided hope for the home fans before Ilyas Chaira's strike took the game to extra-time.

Then, in the 103rd minute, Francisco Portillo produced a stunning finish that sparked wild celebrations from fans that will again get to witness their team compete amongst Spain's elite.

Real Oviedo were a La Liga mainstay for some time, playing their 1,000th Spanish top-flight fixture in the late 1990s before financial issues crippled the Los Azules.

"There’s no way to describe what this means to us. These players are heroes, every single one of them. They deserve great recognition," said Oviedo head coach Veljko Paunovic.

Cazorla, now 40, was forced to leave in 2003 when the club's youth system was wiped out by the off-the-pitch problems and when a second crisis struck a decade later they were forced to drop down to Spain's fourth-tier.

Since rejoining his boyhood side in 2023, Cazorla has been playing for the club on the lowest wage that Spanish regulations will allow.

Cazorla - a two-time European Championship winner with Spain - has been plagued by injury throughout the second half of his career with an Achilles injury suffered in October 2016 leading to 11 operations.

After one particular procedure, doctors told Cazorla that he may even struggle to walk again, never mind continue his playing career and win promotion with his boyhood club.

William Dobbie

• La Liga
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