Ayoze Pérez Gutiérrez

Ayoze Pérez made his mark on the biggest stage he had known: in April 2019 he scored a hat-trick against Southampton, the first Newcastle United player to do so in the Premier League since Georginio Wijnaldum. It capped five years on Tyneside, where he made 179 appearances and scored 42 goals after joining from CD Tenerife for around €3 million.

He had come through Tenerife's academy and reserve side before breaking into the first team, and his 2013–14 season in the Segunda División brought him the LFP Breakthrough Player of the Year and Best Attacking Midfielder awards. Newcastle signed him that summer, and the club won the EFL Championship in 2016–17 during his spell there.

Leicester City paid around £30 million for him in July 2019. He scored 12 goals in 80 appearances and won the FA Cup and the Community Shield with the club in 2021. A loan to Real Betis followed in January 2023, and he made the move permanent that summer on a free transfer, scoring nine goals in 31 appearances in 2023–24.

Villarreal signed him for €4 million in August 2024 on a contract to 2028, and he repaid the move immediately, finishing his debut season as the club's top scorer with 19 goals.

Pérez made his senior debut for Spain in June 2024 and was part of the squad that won Euro 2024 that summer, coming on as a substitute against Italy in the group stage before suffering a muscle injury. By March 2025 he had earned five caps and scored twice for the national side.