Throughout the January transfer window, Ayoze Pérez made it clear he wanted to leave Leicester City and go back to Spain.
The forward had found himself out of the picture under Brendan Rodgers and wanted to return home after nearly ten years in England with Newcastle and then Leicester.
He eventually got his move at the end of the January transfer window, joining Real Betis on loan until the end of the season ahead of his contract at Leicester expiring at the end of the season.
The move has proven to be a very smart one for him, with Marca explaining today how he is now a key player under Manuel Pellegrini.
They say that Pérez is the only player in the Betis squad who has started the last five games for Los Verdiblancos, a sign of the faith that Pellegrini has in him.
In the month and a half since his arrival he’s since ‘made his preferences clear’, with Pérez playing in every game since he has been available and the only player to start all of the last five.
That has seen him accumulate 412 minutes of action in seven games, scoring one goal, providing an assist as well as winning two penalties. That’s a major change from Leicester, where he had only accumulated 700 minutes in 13 games this season and spent most of the season on the bench.
With that in mind, it now seems likely he’ll be remaining at Betis beyond the end of the season, with his loan deal expiring at the same time his contract with Leicester does.
He’ll be ‘free to negotiate’ with anyone he likes in the summer and Pellegrini is ‘delighted’ with the performance he has gotten out of him.
Unless there are any surprises he ‘hopes to continue to count’ on the player next season, with his move from Leicester having proven to be a successful one for all parties involved.
