Ayoze Pérez was at Newcastle United for five seasons and left them for Leicester City in 2019.
The Spain international returned to his homeland when Real Betis signed him initially on loan in January 2023 and made his stay permanent later that summer. He left the La Liga side for Villarreal in the summer window.
Pérez has scored six goals from seven league games for the Yellow Submarines so far. He’s been working on recovering from a muscle problem during the ongoing international break.
The 31-year-old had a chat with El Periódico Mediterráneo to analyse his career so far, including his spell at Newcastle. The Magpies signed him from Tenerife when Alan Pardew was in charge at the club.
The newspaper says the attacker is an ‘idol’ in England and this is when Pérez talked about his experience with Newcastle.
“I’m turning red! [Laughs]. I spent five wonderful years at Newcastle, at least four of them, three and a half of which were with Rafa Bentítez, with whom we promoted to the Premier League, and I learned a lot from him,” he said.
He scored 48 goals and registered 17 assists from 195 games for the Tyneside club. El Periódico Mediterráne points that out and says his statistics with Newcastle were ‘amazing’.
“I started as a 9 at Newcastle, but very soon they moved me to the winger position, and it is true that I performed well, and I was very satisfied with my performance in such an important club. Playing in England and in the Premier League is a unique experience for a footballer,” Pérez explained.
Leicester invested around €33m to buy him from Newcastle. On his exit from St James’ Park, he added: “The truth is that after five years at Newcastle I needed a change, both athletically and mentally. And I signed for Leicester in 2019, years after they won the Premier League.
“Brendan Rodgers bet on me and they were very nice years in which we won two titles, the FA Cup and the Community Shield, and we returned to Europe, returning Leicester to the highest level of football as competitive as English.”
