Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang: Marseille's timeless match-winner
For much of last night's heated Olympico clash between Marseille and Lyon, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang cut a peripheral figure. Les Phocéens were chasing a scoreline, and the margins were starting to get away from the Gabon international. But Aubameyang has the experience to know he only needed two chances to turn the game on its head.
Two goals in the final ten minutes transformed the night at the Vélodrome - turning a tense Olympico into a memorable comeback and reminding everyone that Aubameyang remains one of the most decisive forwards in Ligue 1 McDonald's. At 36 years and eight months, Aubameyang became Marseille’s oldest goalscorer in Ligue 1 since Larbi Ben Barek found the net for the club in 1955.
'I even thought I might score a hatrick!'
"We’re very happy to win tonight in a stadium that was absolutely electric. We did it with mentality, for the team," said Aubameyang to Ligue1.com in the mixed zone following the match. "When they scored the second, I even thought I might score a hat-trick. It might sound crazy, but the match was open. I kept convincing myself and kept making the effort."
It was the mentality of a striker who has spent more than a decade scoring goals across Europe; a career that has taken him from Borussia Dortmund to Arsenal, Barcelona and Chelsea.
“It’s incredible, especially the love he has for the game and his presence in front of goal,” Marseille coach Habib Beye was quick to praise the veteran striker’s influence. “The efforts, he never counts them. Auba stayed for 95 minutes - he pressed, he defended, he worked.”
“The difference between an attacker and a defender is that an attacker can have no opportunity until the 80th minute, then suddenly he has two and scores two. That’s the strength of an experienced striker like Aubameyang — to stay in the match and take the chances.”
Aubameyang’s return to Marseille last summer already felt like unfinished business. After a prolific first spell that included 30 goals during the 2023–24 season, the striker chose to return to the club despite receiving offers elsewhere. “It was the choice of my heart,” he said when rejoining.
Moments like Sunday night’s Olympico illustrate exactly why the reunion made sense. Because while Aubameyang may no longer dominate every phase of a match, his greatest strength remains unchanged. When the moment arrives, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang still knows exactly where to be.
WATCH: Marseille triumph in dramatic Olympico
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