Homegrown hero Aspas the driving force behind Celta Cup run

Spain striker Iago Aspas has shrugged off misadventures at Liverpool and Sevilla to produce the form of his life in a second spell at boyhood club Celta Vigo, who he hopes to fire into the King’s Cup final for the first time in 16 years.

Aspas inspired a shock win over Real Madrid in the quarter-finals, scoring and setting up the second in a 2-1 win at the Bernabeu which put his side on the way to a 4-3 aggregate win. They host Alaves in the semifinal first leg on Thursday.

It was against the Basque club that Aspas made his Celta debut in 2009, coming off the bench to score both goals in a 2-1 victory that steered the club away from relegation to Spain’s regionalised third tier, which would have meant financial ruin.

A lot has changed since then. Aspas is now the focal point of a Celta side competing for a place in the top six of La Liga and facing Shakhtar Donetsk in the Europa League’s last 32.

The 29-year-old was a late bloomer but with time has carved out an impressive career. Aspas is the top scoring Spaniard in La Liga with 11 goals this season and is fourth overall.

He became a Spain international last November, marking his debut with a sensational equaliser against England at Wembley to prove he bore no scars from his unhappy year at Liverpool.

“Right now, everything he tries comes off,” said Celta coach Eduardo Berizzo last month. “He’s a player who makes things happen. If you give him the ball in space, he creates even more space. He creates chances for himself.”

Born 20km from Celta’s Balaidos ground in the town of Moana, Aspas joined the club aged eight. He was not a regular starter until the 2011/12 campaign, when his 23 goals in 35 games fired Celta back to the top flight for the first time in five years.

Aspas played an equally pivotal role in clinching survival on the final day of the following season with 12 goals.

Liverpool took notice, bringing him to Anfield for 9 million euros ($9.72 million), although the Spaniard never settled.

Captain Steven Gerrard wrote in his autobiography that he was sceptical about Aspas’ suitability to the Premier League when he first saw him in the dressing room, comparing his physique to that of “a little boy”.

Aspas made just five league starts, and he is remembered for a hopeless corner against Chelsea which led to Willian racing down the other end to score and wreck Liverpool’s title dreams.

Sevilla offered him a ticket back to Spain but a return to his home country proved no happier on the pitch. He made only four league starts and was caught on camera having a bitter verbal spat with coach Unai Emery in the dugout in one game.

It was when he truly came home, back to his native Galicia and his beloved Celta where he was greeted by thousands of fans at his presentation, that he began to recapture his form.

His sparkling displays have naturally made him the focus of other clubs’ attention, but Aspas has declared that he has no intention of making the same mistake by leaving Celta again.

“Paris Saint-Germain have made enquiries, as have other teams, but I’m happy here,” he said in a recent interview with radio show El Larguero.

“I’m very happy here, with my people. I’m with my son, my wife, my parents, and that’s something money can’t buy. I always dreamt of playing for Celta, and that’s where I want to retire.”