Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang continues to defy his 37 years, and on Saturday night he produced another moment of brilliance to hand Deportivo A Coruña a dramatic 3-2 win at Villarreal. With the game locked level deep into stoppage time, the veteran forward latched onto a stray pass from Villarreal substitute Ilias Akhomach, intended for teammate Sergi Cardona, and sprinted the length of the pitch before slotting past goalkeeper Luiz Júnior to complete his second assist of the night and seal victory in the 89th minute.
The strike extended a remarkable individual streak for Aubameyang, who has now scored in each of Deportivo's opening four league matches this season — a new club record, surpassing the three consecutive starts once managed by Bebeto in 1992. Over recent weeks he has beaten Valencia's defense for pace before chipping the goalkeeper, rounded Málaga's Alfonso Herrero to open the scoring, and produced a fine first-time finish against Elche off a Lorenzo Amatucci pass. He now has the club record of seven consecutive scoring league appearances, shared by Bebeto and Lucas Pérez, firmly in his sights.
The win in Villarreal was about more than one man, though. Deportivo, nicknamed "Super Dépor" during their golden era around the turn of the millennium — when the club, led by the likes of Bebeto, Djalminha and Roy Makaay, won the 2000 league title, two Copa del Rey trophies and reached the 2004 Champions League semi-finals — are enjoying a renaissance after returning to the top flight this season following an eight-year absence and three separate relegations since 2011.
Villarreal took the lead through former Arsenal winger Nicolas Pépé, but Deportivo hit back when new arrival José María Giménez, on loan from Atlético Madrid, stepped out of defense to set up Aubameyang, who cleverly squared for Luismi Cruz to equalize. Villarreal restored their advantage when debutant wing-back Adama Traoré, a free-agent signing who joined after speaking with former Barcelona teammate Aubameyang, inadvertently headed the ball over his own goalkeeper following a Gerard Moreno cross. Deportivo leveled again through Dutch striker Zakaria Eddahchouri, who finished at the near post after another incisive Aubameyang pass, before the captain's late heroics sealed all three points.
The victory reflects an ambitious summer rebuild at the club, backed by majority owner Abanca, which has seen roughly €26million spent on new signings — a figure exceeded only by Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atlético Madrid and Real Betis in La Liga this season. Alongside Giménez, Barcelona loanee Marc Casadó has also arrived, and was reportedly impressed by the club's revamped training facilities, joking that they were