The miracle of Santi Cazorla

Santi Cazorla brings glory to Real Oviedo.

As the stands at Carlos Tartiere exploded with cheers, Cazorla continued to write his childhood dream through sweat and tears. In the La Liga promotion play-off final, Oviedo beat Mirandés 3-2 on aggregate over two legs, with a 3-1 home win in the second leg proving to be the turning point.

In the early morning of June 22, the goals of Cazorla, Ilyas Chaira and Francisco Portillo were not just cold numbers on the scoreboard, they were also symbols of perseverance and belief. When the final whistle blew, thousands of spectators poured onto the pitch, tears mixed with smiles, hugging each other. Because a whole generation of Oviedo fans had waited for this moment for so long.

Amazing Journey

Cazorla began his footballing journey at the age of eight with Oviedo's youth team, watching the likes of Carlos Munoz, Slavisa Jokanovic, Robert Prosinecki and Petr Dubovsky as his idols. Now he's a hometown hero.

More than a decade ago, Cazorla was forced to leave when his hometown club faced financial crisis, but fate brought him back two years ago with the statement: "I am willing to play for free, but the rules do not allow it."

Cazorla put his words into action, scoring a 1-1 equaliser from the penalty spot in the second leg. Earlier, Mirandés' Joaquin Panichelli had opened the scoring in the second leg, giving the visitors a 2-0 aggregate lead.

It looked like it was all over for Oviedo, but Cazorla and his teammates refused to give up. Portillo's extra-time goal was the climax of the emotion, sending the whole stadium into a frenzy. This was the first time since the 2000/01 season that Oviedo had played in Spain's top flight.

Cazorla’s illustrious career with Villarreal, Arsenal and Spain is testament to his natural talent. He possesses superb technique and the ability to take free-kicks with both feet – something that has made him famous around the world . But it is his never-say-die attitude that has made him so successful with Oviedo.

After a serious Achilles injury in 2016, when doctors told him he would be content just to walk, Cazorla underwent 11 operations to return to the pitch. His return to Oviedo was an emotional journey, as he not only played football but also healed the emotional wounds of those difficult days.

In the play-off semi-final against Almería, his perfect free-kick paved the way for the Oviedo people's dream, and now his penalty against Mirandés completes the fairy tale.

“It’s impossible to put into words what this victory means to us, ” Oviedo head coach Veljko Paunovic said in a tearful voice on La Liga TV . “These players are heroes, every single one of them. They deserve a lot of recognition.”

El Pais commented that this moment can never be overshadowed in the history of Oviedo, because it is proof of the revival of a team that was once on the verge of bankruptcy and falling to the fourth division of Spain in the early 21st century.

Santi Cazorla you 1

Santi Cazorla fulfilled his childhood dream of bringing Oviedo back to La Liga.

Dreams come true

Cazorla’s miraculous story is not limited to himself, but also extends to teammates like Kwasi Sibo, the 27-year-old Ghanaian midfielder of Oviedo. From a teenager in Ghana admiring Cazorla on the TV screen, Sibo now plays alongside his idol on the pitch.

When Cazorla scored the free kick that beat Almería and sent Oviedo into the play-off final, Sibo sensed the magic even before the ball hit the net. “His (Cazorla’s) first touch was incredible… When I stood there watching the free kick, I thought, ‘This ball is in the net’, because the guy behind it was Cazorla,” Sibo recalled.

Twelve years ago, the teenage Sibo was stunned to see Cazorla shine on the Emirates pitch. Fifteen years later, he became teammates with his idol, helping Oviedo make history.

“When you talk about Oviedo, you have to talk about Santi Cazorla. When you talk about the heart of this club, the heart of this team, it is Santi Cazorla. So I am very happy. I did not know how to celebrate when he scored because it was a very important goal in our lives,” Sibo confided.

Sibo still has to pat himself on the cheek every now and then to remind himself that he is playing alongside Cazorla in the Oviedo midfield: "I never imagined that day would come. It was magical to play with Santi, to bring the team up to La Liga. Santi Cazorla is the eternal symbol of Oviedo."

Sibo was not exaggerating. In 2012, the former Arsenal star invested money in Oviedo shares to avoid the club falling into bankruptcy. At that time, Oviedo had fallen to the Fourth Division. A full decade later, Cazorla gave up his €2 million annual salary in Qatar to return to save his boyhood club with a symbolic income of only €77,000 per season.

Cazorla even gave the club full rights to exploit his image, and agreed to share an additional 10% of his shirt sales to invest in Oviedo's youth development. Coach Paunovic said that there are millions of professional players playing across Europe, but he is not sure if anyone would be willing to sacrifice like Cazorla for his childhood team.

Don't forget that Cazorla did not return to Oviedo to retire, but still shines on the field like a true star.

Source: https://znews.vn/dieu-ky-dieu-cua-santi-cazorla-post1562767.html