Santi Cazorla
Image credit: Getty Images
Former Arsenal and Spain midfielder Santi Cazorla has signed a one-year contract extension with his boyhood club, Real Oviedo, confirming his return to La Liga for the 2025/26 season at the age of 40.
The club announced the extension on Saturday, July 12, celebrating Cazorla’s fairytale return to the side where his professional journey began. His renewed commitment comes on the heels of Oviedo’s dramatic promotion to Spain’s top flight, ending a 24-year absence from La Liga.
Cazorla, who turns 41 in December, played a crucial role in the club’s promotion campaign last season, featuring in 35 matches, scoring five goals, and delivering clutch moments in the playoffs. He netted a vital free-kick in the semi-final against Almeria and calmly slotted home a penalty in the final against Mirandés, helping Oviedo seal a 3–2 aggregate win.
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“It has been everything I expected,” Cazorla told Sky Sports in 2023 when asked about his return to Oviedo. “This is really, really important for me.” His emotional bond with the club runs deep, he joined the Oviedo academy at age eight and even purchased shares in 2012 to help rescue the club from financial collapse.
Santi Cazorla
Santi Cazorla (Image credit: Getty Images)
Despite a decorated career that includes two European Championships with Spain (2008 and 2012), two FA Cups with Arsenal, and successful spells at Villarreal, Málaga, and Al Sadd, Cazorla’s comeback to Oviedo in 2023 was marked by humility and loyalty. He opted to take La Liga’s minimum salary of €77,500 and donates 10% of his shirt sales to Oviedo’s youth academy.
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In a heartfelt statement, the club praised Cazorla’s symbolic status, saying: “With this renewal, Santi Cazorla, a symbol and emblem of Oviedo, proves that dreams, when pursued with the heart, come true.”
Real Oviedo president Martin Pelaez also lauded Cazorla’s influence within the squad: “You can see his status in the squad; he is in charge.”
As Oviedo embarks on its first La Liga campaign since 2001, the veteran midfielder’s experience and leadership under coach Veljko Paunovic are expected to be invaluable. Though age may limit his minutes, Cazorla’s proven ability to deliver in high-pressure situations means he remains a pivotal figure.
From a local boy in Fonciello to a global football icon, Cazorla’s journey comes full circle with Oviedo. As fans rally behind the club’s anthem “Volveremos” (“We will return”), Cazorla continues to personify their enduring hope and now, their dream has become reality.
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