VIDEO: Former Arsenal star Santi Cazorla scores dramatic free-kick with his weaker foot at 40 years of age to put boyhood club into La Liga play-off final

The ex-Spain international returned to his boyhood club in 2023, with the lowest possible salary being agreed as he endeavoured to help them clamber back into La Liga. After 25 years outside of the top-flight, Oviedo are one step away from fulfilling that dream.

That is thanks to Cazorla, who stepped off the bench to make a decisive contribution in the second leg of their play-off semi-final clash with Almeria. He fired in a free-kick from the edge of the box, with the ball sent fizzing into the bottom corner.

What made that strike even more impressive is the fact Cazorla - who once endured eight operations on an ankle problem and saw gangrene pose an amputation risk - took said set-piece with his left foot.

Cazorla, who won the European Championship with Spain in 2008 and 2012, said of potentially securing a spot in La Liga: "Getting promoted with Oviedo would be on the same level as winning the first Euro Cup.

"This will be the most beautiful achievement for me, for my family and friends, because I grew up here and I have deep feelings for this club. I'm not thinking about playing in Primera yet. I want to see how I feel and what the club wants first."

The evergreen playmaker added on his future, having emulated Portuguese GOAT Cristiano Ronaldo by playing beyond his 40th birthday: "I've taken a couple of breaks, and maybe I'll take another soon, but right now, it's working out well. I play two years on, two years off, for as long as I can keep going."