There are times when the Vélodrome is not just a stadium: it becomes a volcano again. One of those nights where Marseille beats stronger than the city, where OM seems to replay its history with its heroes, its adventures and its brilliance. And, against Newcastle (2-1), this match of the fifth League phase of the Champions League found its main character this Tuesday evening: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, 36 years old, predatory smile and feet still sharp as the first day.
Four clear chances before the break. Four face-to-face defeats that, at his age, can shake certainties. An attack without an angle can be repelled. Recovery is not strong enough. The head is not framed. Another failed attempt. The vélodrome scratches, holding its breath, but raising its hands with every acceleration, because with Aubameyang, we know: the goal is never far away.
He’s not realistic, no. But he never gave up and recovered well. Time, for Aubameyang, is not something that can be avoided. It’s a weapon. In the second half, two chances. Two live balloons, two moments taken from the chaos. Two goals. A first in pure number 9 tradition: a sharp call, a surgical finish in an impossible angle.
And this second, a foxlike achievement from the surface, skilled in leaping to the near post, is celebrated with a “somersault”, this characteristic gesture, as if to say: “Did you think I was finished? You never really looked at me. »
He returned this summer from Al-Qadsiah in Saudi Arabia to relive these emotions, the continental nights that write legends, to feel the skin vibrating under the decibels of the Vélodrome.
Guide and scorer
Pey-Aub is no longer just a goal scorer: he is a guide. He breathes, he speaks, he shows. He took kids like Vaz or Bakola under his wing. “We didn’t start the game well,” said the hero of the night on Canal+. After that we take control of the game again. In the first half, the coach told us to believe that there would be opportunities. »
There was also, in the duel against Newcastle, an almost mystical resonance. Every time the Magpies appear in Marseille, OM’s African striker is the center of attention.
How not to call Didier Drogba, the Ivorian who shone from 2003-2004, creator of the return of the UEFA Cup semi-finals that entered the club’s blue line (2-0). His goals, his enthusiasm, his crazy racing had paved the way to qualifying.
Twenty years later, Aubameyang, to a standing ovation, continues this sacred lineage. Drogba and him, two different trajectories, but one meeting point: they know how to burn the Vélodrome.
They were the great African strikers who carried this city, who instinctively understood what this jersey represented, this burning passion, this simple and extraordinary command: always aim for the goal.
Marseille doesn’t like lukewarm people. Marseille loves those who dare, those who fall, those who rise again. They failed four times but scored two decisive goals. Those who, at an age when others have hung up the phone, come back because they still feel that the speaker can excite them.
This Tuesday evening, Aubameyang not only broke the English barrier (3 goals in C1 and many assists this season): he remembered an important truth, discovered a truth: OM does not age, OM is passed on. Like Drogba in his time, Aubam is now a passer. At the fiery Vélodrome, he scored more than two goals: he perpetuated tradition, honored the motto and made Marseille his heart. Get straight to the point. Always.
And his brazen success, beyond symbolism, above all gave OM a valuable breath of fresh air: thanks to this success, Marseille remains in full contention to qualify for the play-offs this winter. One win in the last three days is even enough to ensure qualification for the play-offs.
