Ayoze Perez has signed a new long-term contract with Newcastle United after arriving at St. James’ Park in June 2014.
The 22-year-old has put pen-to-paper on a new five-and-a-half-year deal which will keep the Spaniard at the club until 2021 after becoming an important member in the Newcastle United squad.
Perez has scored 12 goals in 63 appearances for the Magpies, five of which have come since the arrival of Steve McClaren – who seemingly has used him as an impact substitute.
“It’s a special day for me,” Perez told nufc.co.uk. “A big day for me. The truth is I’m really happy here, so it’s a good thing for me – and I hope it’s the same for the Geordie family.”
The young forward also told the club’s official website that, “Newcastle gave me everything,” and that he’s “really pleased to sign this new contract.”
Newcastle United head coach McClaren was also “delighted” that his Spanish forward signed a new deal.
“He is a very good player with huge potential and someone we believe has a very big future at Newcastle United,” said McClaren. “We are building this club for the long-term and Ayoze is a very important part of that.”
Born in Tenerife, Perez signed for his hometown club in 2004 as an 11-year-old, where he spent the next ten years.
After impressing for Tenerife B with 12 goals in 36 appearances, Perez was called up to the first team, who played in the Segunda Division of Spanish football.
October 2014 saw Perez claim the Breakthrough Player in the 2013-14 Segunda Division and Best Attacking Midfielder Awards during the same season at the LFP Awards Ceremony.
Ayoze Perez arrives at Newcastle United
With 17 goals in 50 appearances for Tenerife’s first team, Perez caught the eye of Barcelona, Real Madrid and FC Porto, but instead opted for the Premier League in a deal believed to have been around €2 million.
Making his Newcastle debut coming on as a substitute in August 2014, Perez scored his first goal on his first start against Tottenham Hotspur which saw the Spaniard score in three Premier League games running.
Following the departure of Alan Pardew and arrival of John Carver, the Spaniard’s form started to drop as the Tyneside club went on a run of eight games without a win.
Perez scored his first goal of the 2015-16 season in a 2-2 draw against Premier League Champions Chelsea before netting in Newcastle’s first win of the season – a 6-2 thumping of Norwich City.
The Spaniard continued his fine form with the only goal as Newcastle faced a Bournemouth side before coming on as a substitute against Tottenham Hotspur, where he scored the winning goal.