Few players are as important to their club as Iago Aspas is to Celta Vigo. The 37-year-old striker scored his 214th goal in the blue colours, securing the team's promotion to the Europa League. The club president called him “the best player in Celta's history” and the mayor promised him a statue at Estadio Abanca Balaídos.

Captain, hero, legend

Iago Aspas is a living legend at Celta Vigo. The 214 goals he scored in 524 games with the team from Galicia speak for itself. Despite being 37 years old, the striker is not only captain of the team, but he also sealed Celta's promotion to the European League with a 1:2 goal against Getafe at the Coliseum, fulfilling an old promise in his - most likely - penultimate season.

That was on 11 May 2017. After a draw at Old Trafford (1:1, 2:1 for Manchester United in the two-legged tie), the team from the olive city dropped out of the semi-finals. When the dust had not yet settled and the tears had not yet dried, Aspas promised: I'm sure we'll return. I will do what I possibly can to make it happen.

In the following years, however, Celta struggled to stay in La Liga, with Aspas donning the superhero cape time and time again to save the team from relegation. It wasn't until eight years later that he was given the chance to fulfil his promise, and in a decisive moment he did not miss. Club president Marian Mouriño, coach Claudio Giraldez and mayor Abel Caballero hailed Aspas as the best player in the club's history and Caballero also promised him a statue at Estadio Abanca Balaídos. When we were in Manchester, there was a statue of Bobby Charlton in front of the stadium (...) The same will happen here with Iago Aspas, he assured.

A statue of Bobby Charlton, George Best and Denis Law outside Old Trafford.