Ayoze Pérez

Ayoze Pérez Gutiérrez (born 29 July 1993) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a forward or attacking midfielder for La Liga club Real Betis, on loan from Premier League club Leicester City.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Pérez and the second or maternal family name is Gutiérrez.

Ayoze Pérez
Pérez playing for Newcastle United in 2015
Personal information
Full name Ayoze Pérez Gutiérrez[1]
Date of birth (1993-07-29) 29 July 1993
Place of birth Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]
Position(s) Forward, attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Betis
(on loan from Leicester City)
Number 21
Youth career
1998–2002 CD San Andrés
2002–2004 UD Santa Cruz
2004–2011 Tenerife
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2013 Tenerife B 35 (11)
2012–2014 Tenerife 50 (17)
2014–2019 Newcastle United 179 (42)
2019– Leicester City 80 (12)
2023– → Betis (loan) 15 (2)
International career
2014 Spain U21 2 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:25, 15 May 2023 (UTC)

He began his career at hometown club CD Tenerife, where he received several personal awards for his performances in the 2013–14 Segunda División season before joining Newcastle for around €3 million.

Pérez has represented Spain internationally at under-21 level.

Club career

Tenerife

Born in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canary Islands, Pérez finished his formation with local club Tenerife, making his senior debut with the B-team in the 2011–12 season, in the fourth division.[3][4] He appeared with the main squad in the third level in the following campaign,[5] featuring in 16 matches and scoring once as the Blanquiazules returned to division two after a two-year absence.[6][7]

After impressing in the 2013 pre-season,[8] Pérez played his first professional match on 18 August, starting in a 1–0 away defeat against Alcorcón.[9] He scored his first goal in the "silver category" on 29 September, in a 1–0 home win over Real Madrid Castilla.[10]

On 23 March of the following year Pérez scored his first hat-trick of his career, starting in a 5–0 thrashing against Ponferradina.[11] This was one of the performances which earned him the league's Player of the Month award,[12] which he retained for a second consecutive time while his manager Álvaro Cervera won the equivalent.[13]

In October 2014, Pérez won the Breakthrough Player in the 2013–14 Segunda División and Best Attacking Midfielder in the 2013–14 Segunda División awards at the LFP Awards Ceremony.[14][15]

Newcastle United

On 5 June 2014, Pérez rejected interest from Real Madrid, Barcelona and Porto to join Premier League club Newcastle United for an estimated €3 million fee.[16][17][18] The deal was confirmed a day later.[19] He made his league debut on 17 August, replacing fellow debutant Emmanuel Rivière in the 83rd minute of a 2–0 home defeat against then champions Manchester City.[20]

Pérez scored his first goal in his first league start on 26 October, in a 2–1 away win over Tottenham Hotspur.[21] Six days later, as a half-time substitute for Papiss Cissé, he scored the only goal of the game to defeat Liverpool and give Newcastle their fourth successive win.[22] On 9 November, Pérez made it three league goals in as many games in a 2–0 away win against West Bromwich Albion.[23] He scored less frequently in the second half of the season as Newcastle struggled, but his equaliser against the same opponents on 9 May 2015 ended a run of eight consecutive defeats under John Carver, as Newcastle avoided relegation.[24]

Pérez scored Newcastle's first in a 2–2 draw with title holders Chelsea on 26 September 2015.[25] On 18 October, he recorded a goal in a 6–2 rout of Norwich City, Newcastle's first win of the season.[26] He scored the only goal of an away win at Bournemouth on 7 November, with Newcastle's only shot on target.[27] On 13 December, as a substitute, he scored an added-time winner at Tottenham Hotspur, moving Newcastle out of the relegation places.[28]

On 1 February 2016, Newcastle United announced that Pérez signed a new contract, committing himself to the club until the summer of 2021.[29]

Pérez stayed with Newcastle despite a drop into the Championship, helping the club return to the Premiership immediately after one season. Pérez ended the season with 9 goals in 25 appearances,[30] with 11 of them coming as starts, scoring key goals against title rivals Brighton[31] as well as Barnsley to help seal the Championship title on the final day of the season.[32]

He scored his first Premier League goal of the season in a 2–2 draw at Southampton on 15 October.[33] He then scored in consecutive matches in a 1–0 away win over Stoke City[34] and a brace in a 3–1 home win over Luton in the FA Cup.[35] On 31 March 2018, Pérez ended his 8-match goalless run by scoring the only goal in a victory over Huddersfield, in the 80th minute.[36] Pérez continued his good form with a goal and an assist each, in wins over Leicester City[37] and Arsenal.[38]

On 20 April 2019, he scored his first hat-trick for the club in a 3–1 win over Southampton.[39] In doing so, he became the first player to score a Premier League hat-trick for Newcastle since Georginio Wijnaldum in 2015.[40]

Leicester City

On 4 July 2019, Pérez signed a four-year contract with Leicester City for a fee of £30m.[41][42] He made his competitive debut for Leicester City in a 0–0 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers on 11 August.[43] On 25 October 2019, Perez scored his first goal for Leicester City, going on to complete a hat-trick in a 9–0 away win over Southampton.[44]

On 11 April 2021, Pérez was one of three players dropped from Leicester's squad for the game against West Ham United after breaching COVID-19 protocols.[45]

Loan to Real Betis

On 31 January 2023, Pérez joined Real Betis on loan for the remainder of the 2022–23 season.[46][47] He scored his first goal for the club in a Europa League match against Manchester United at Old Trafford on 9 March 2023.

International career

On 29 August 2014, Pérez received his first call-up to the Spain national under-21 team for the 2015 European Under-21 Championships qualifying matches against Hungary and Austria.[48] He made his under-21 debut as a 77th-minute substitute for Munir El Haddadi against Hungary on 4 September.[49]

Personal life

Pérez's older brother, Samuel, is also a forward, who has played for Blyth Spartans and Berwick Rangers.[50][51] He currently plays for Alnwick Town in the Northern Football Alliance Premier Division. His cousin María José Pérez is a forward for Levante UD Femenino and the Spain women's national team.[52]

After leaving Newcastle, Perez became the subject of a comedy drama based on a true story when a teenage girl convinced her parents to buy the property next to his. On the day they moved in, Perez was transferred to Leicester City. The show, starring ex-Emmerdale star Charlie Hardwick and local stand-up comedian, Mike Milligan was recorded by the Newcastle Evening Chronicle as “the most incredible story to come out of the WAGS generation”.[53]

Career statistics
As of match played 15 May 2023[54]
Club Season League National Cup[lower-alpha 1] League Cup[lower-alpha 2] Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Tenerife B 2011–12[3][55] Tercera División 186————186
2012–13[54][55] Tercera División 175————175
Total 3511————3511
Tenerife 2012–13 Segunda División B 16100———161
2013–14 Segunda División 341610———3516
Total 501710———5117
Newcastle United 2014–15 Premier League 3670030——397
2015–16 Premier League 3461020——376
2016–17 Championship 3692033——4112
2017–18 Premier League 3681200——3710
2018–19 Premier League 37123110——4113
Total 179427393——19548
Leicester City 2019–20 Premier League 3382050——408
2020–21 Premier League 25261104[lower-alpha 3]0—363
2021–22 Premier League 14210009[lower-alpha 4]11[lower-alpha 5]0253
2022–23 Premier League 801041——131
Total 80121011011311011415
Real Betis (loan) 2022–23 La Liga 152——2[lower-alpha 3]1—173
Career total 359841841941521041294
  1. Includes Copa del Rey, FA Cup
  2. Includes Football League/EFL Cup
  3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. Four appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League, five appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
  5. Appearance in FA Community Shield

Honours

Newcastle United

Leicester City

Individual

References
  1. "Premier League clubs publish 2019/20 retained lists". Premier League. 26 June 2020. Retrieved 10 July 2020.
  2. "Ayoze Pérez". Leicester City F.C. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  3. "Una máquina de hacer goles" [A goal machine]. La Opinión de Tenerife (in Spanish). 7 June 2012. Retrieved 23 September 2014.
  4. "Entrevista a Ayoze" [Interview to Ayoze] (in Spanish). Bota Heliodoro. 10 May 2013. Archived from the original on 26 July 2014. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  5. "Ocho jugadores del CD Tenerife B realizarán la pretemporada con el primer equipo" [Eight CD Tenerife B players will make the pre-season with the first team] (in Spanish). CD Tenerife. 14 July 2012. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
  6. "Ayoze Pérez, otro canterano que vuelve a poner en valor la formación en el CD Tenerife" [Ayoze Pérez, another canterano who enhances CD Tenerife's formation] (in Spanish). CD Tenerife. 22 December 2012. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
  7. "Catorce goleadores del CD Tenerife en lo que va de temporada" [Fourteen goalscorers of CD Tenerife in the season] (in Spanish). CD Tenerife. 6 May 2013. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
  8. "Ayoze pide paso para ser titular" [Ayoze calls on starting XI duties]. Marca (in Spanish). 12 August 2013. Retrieved 24 September 2014.
  9. "El Alcorcón sigue abonado a los finales con suspense" [Alcorcón and close games a marriage made in heaven]. Marca (in Spanish). Spain. 18 August 2013. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  10. "El Tenerife respira y el Castilla se ahoga" [Tenerife breathes and Castilla drowns]. Marca (in Spanish). Spain. 29 September 2013. Retrieved 16 October 2013.
  11. "'Manita' tinerfeña con sabor a 'playoff' a costa de los bercianos" [Tenerife's manita with a taste of 'playoff' at the Bercians' expense]. Marca (in Spanish). Spain. 23 March 2014. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  12. "Premios BBVA a los mejores de marzo" [BBVA awards for the best in March] (in Spanish). Liga de Fútbol Profesional. 7 April 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
  13. "Premios BBVA a los mejores de abril" [BBVA Awards for the best in April] (in Spanish). Liga de Fútbol Profesional. 30 April 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2016.
  14. "Ayoze, winner of the '2013–14 Liga Adelante Breakthrough Player'award". Liga de Fútbol Profesional. 27 October 2014. Retrieved 28 October 2014.
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  16. Starforth, Miles (27 October 2014). "Ayoze Pérez snubbed Barcelona AND Real Madrid to sign for Newcastle". Shields Gazette. Archived from the original on 12 September 2017. Retrieved 27 October 2014.
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  18. "Ayoze Pérez, al Newcastle" [Ayoze Pérez, to Newcastle]. Marca (in Spanish). Spain. 21 May 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
  19. "Magpies Confirm Ayoze Arrival" (Press release). Newcastle United F.C. 6 June 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
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  21. "Premier League: Newcastle come from behind to beat Tottenham 2–1 at White Hart Lane". Sky Sports. 26 October 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2014.
  22. Chowdhury, Saj (1 November 2014). "Newcastle 1–0 Liverpool". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
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  24. McNulty, Phil (9 May 2015). "Newcastle 1–1 West Brom". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  25. Olsen, Olsen (26 September 2015). "Newcastle 2–2 Chelsea". BBC Sport. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  26. "Newcastle United 6–2 Norwich City". BBC Sport. 18 October 2015. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
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  28. Johnston, Neil (13 December 2015). "Tottenham 1–2 Newcastle". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 December 2015.
  29. "Pérez Signs New Magpies Deal" (Press release). Newcastle United F.C. 1 February 2016. Retrieved 1 February 2016.
  30. "Ayoze Pérez Football Statistics | WhoScored.com". www.whoscored.com.
  31. "Brighton & Hove Albion 1–2 Newcastle United". BBC Sport. 28 February 2017.
  32. "Newcastle United 3–0 Barnsley". BBC Sport. 7 May 2017.
  33. "Southampton 2–2 Newcastle United".
  34. "Stoke City 0–1 Newcastle United". BBC Sport.
  35. "Newcastle United 3–1 Luton Town".
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  37. "Leicester City 1–2 Newcastle".
  38. "Newcastle 2–1 Arsenal". BBC Sport.
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  42. "Ayoze Perez: Leicester agree £30m fee for Newcastle striker". 2 July 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2019.
  43. "Wolves have goal ruled out by VAR in stalemate at Leicester". BBC Sport. 11 August 2019.
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  49. Watson-Broughton, Matthew (4 September 2014). "Ñíguez fires Spain to Hungary success". UEFA. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
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  52. Menayo, David (12 October 2015). "María José Pérez: gol con sabor a leyenda canaria". Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 3 September 2016.
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