Any club hoping for success needs a 20 goals-a-season striker. Ayoze Perez could be Newcastle United’s man, according to Mick Quinn in his column for The Chronicle.
The former Republic of Ireland international has plenty of experience at this level, a point he freely admits.
The most important part of the game for the Magpies is going to be goals, he believes. Last season’s relegation was as much due to the lack of a consistent goalscorer as a porous defence.
This season, in his view, is offering five or six potential goalscorers in the team, compared with two or three last term.
Key is Ayoze Perez, recently the subject of speculation over a possible move to Barcelona. The Spaniard, Quinn believes, is the key to success:
Perez has got creativity and all the skills in the world. To me, goals are the only thing lacking in his game.
He’s got to score them to keep his place now there is a bit of competition at that end of the field…he should be scoring more goals in a black-and-white shirt.
He should be running at defenders, encouraging them to tackle him and winning free-kicks for the team.
As well as the physical product, Quinn has wise words over Perez’s attitude or more accurately, the potential pitfalls of becoming complacent.
It’s not just Perez who has to watch for that, the problem could strike any of the squad. Rafa strikes me as the sort of boss who is well-versed in keeping players feet firmly on the ground.
