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Hugo Duro is no longer an accidental hero for Valencia after late double | Sid Lowe

08-Nov-2021 13:20:00 | The Guardian

Striker was a figure of fun among Valencia fans after blocking a goalbound shot while at Getafe – but Sunday changed that

Valencia fans started chanting Hugo Duro’s name years before he ever played for them. A cult hero when he wasn’t even at the club, it wasn’t just the fans – it was the players as well – and it wasn’t just the songs, either; it was the banners and shirts too. It was also an accident. It was then, anyway, but not this time. This time they were going wild for all the right reasons and he joined in, running towards the corner and throwing himself to the ground, tumbling to the turf as everyone rightly lost it on Sunday afternoon. After all, he had just done what no one else had ever done in La Liga: scored twice in added time to avoid defeat.

Like a comic book character with a comic book moniker, ‘Hugo Hard’ had rescued them when all was lost, and against the champions too. He had only come on in the 86th minute and touched the ball three times, but two of those had gone in the net, a superb volley in the 92nd minute and a header on 95.26 seeing Valencia come from 3-1 down to draw 3-3, another absurd comeback in another crazy weekend. First it had been Iago Aspas, scoring the 97th minute equaliser against Barcelona on Saturday afternoon. Now, 24 hours later, it was him. “Hugo …” bellowed the PA announcer. “Duro!” they replied. Hugo … Duro! Hugo … Duro! Hugo … Duro!”