Aubameyang's new life in Spain with fresh challenge at historic club

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has unfinished business in La Liga. The former Arsenal and Chelsea striker scored 11 goals in half a season at Barcelona to help them climb from ninth to second, but left after just 18 league appearances.

So, when the opportunity came to return to Spain's top flight with Deportivo A Coruna, he wasn't going to say no. The Galician club are back in La Liga for the first time since their 2018 relegation and the addition of the Gabonese striker sends a message.

"The passion is still there, definitely, otherwise I'd choose another challenge," Aubameyang told Mirror Football. "I had a few offers, but the passion is still there and I still want to challenge myself and think this one is a special challenge to try to bring back the club to its best.

"Next year is going to be 20 years since I started my career as a professional and I have to say the truth, I'm feeling quite good. I can still give a lot for the game and still have the passion, I think this will never change.

"As long as my body says I can go, I will go. Obviously, if I feel one day I cannot give my best to play at the best level, I'll say maybe I stop, but for the moment I'm sure that I have some more years to give. This is why I accepted the challenge here, because I know I can really help, I can still score some goals, I can give some assists, I can be effective in the game."

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The 2021/22 season was a tough one for Barcelona. Ronald Koeman was sacked in October with the Catalan club at risk of missing out on Champions League qualification, but the appointment of Xavi and the mid-season additions of Aubameyang and Ferran Torres helped them recover.

"I was happy to be part of this Barca team, even if at that time they were struggling," Aubameyang added. "We could reach second place. When I arrived, we were ninth and I think this was a big effort from the whole team.

"I saw some guys saying I'm the hero of Barca, this is funny, but let's say I was happy to be at the club at this moment, I was happy to give some good moments and some good memories for the fans.

"I still have some good messages from the fans and think it was a really nice moment playing in Barca that I will never forget. But now I'm happy to be back, it's definitely a different situation but an exciting one and hopefully it's going to be a nice year ahead."

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Aubameyang, now 37, has two sons with his wife Alysha. The last few years have brought upheaval with his club football - he has played for a different club every year since 2021, albeit with two separate years at Marseille - and now has responsibility as a leader on the pitch as he aims to use his experience to benefit team-mates new to the challenges brought by Spain's top flight.

Depor became just the ninth different team to win La Liga when they claimed the title in 1999/2000. The 26 years since have seen the title shared between just four sides - all repeat champions - so that precious triumph emphasises their status as one of Spanish football's historic clubs.

Aubameyang is under no illusions about where they stand these days, though. It's likely to take a while for them to climb back into the upper reaches of the table and the first task this season is survival.

"Obviously, I saw Deportivo back in the day in top form, playing [in the] Champions League," he said. "I think everyone likes Deportivo because they had a great time, winning La Liga, playing in the Champions League, so I'm happy the club is back in La Liga and I will try to give my best. It's a process, we're going to go step by step, but I want to live this history and give my best to leave my mark."

The club also has a rich history of African players. Cameroon goalkeeper Jacques Songo'o and Moroccan centre-back Noureddine Naybet were part of Depor's title-winning squad and Aubameyang now has a chance to add his own name to that iconic list.

"It's always a good thing to be representing Africa all around the world and especially here at this club," he said. "Hopefully we can mark our history by giving our best, giving my best, to bring the club back to where it belongs."

At the same time, he recognises his role will involve work off the pitch as well as on it. There are a number of younger and less experienced players in Depor's squad and he has a role to play when it comes to showing them the ropes at the highest level.

"We know back in the day the club was playing [in the] Champions League and I think the club is doing the best to be back at the best level," he said. "Obviously, it's a process; we have to do it step by step, but I want to be part of this history.

"We have a good mix now because we have a lot of young talents and obviously they called me because I can bring my experience, my voice, and I can help on the pitch and off the pitch. This is going to be my role at the club. I'm happy to play this role and hopefully it can work."

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