While Newcastle United had a shocking transfer deadline day, they did at least make one signing – Santiago Munoz.
If it wasn’t for his name, no one would really care.
He’s a teenage striker with limited senior experience, who arrives on an 18-month loan deal with an option to buy.
But with a name almost identical to the lead character from ‘Goal!’, Munoz has captured the imagination of Toons fans. If anything, it’s been a PR masterclass.
However, there’s one former Newcastle United player who the club will hope Munoz emulates – Ayoze Perez.
Santiago Munoz could be the ‘new’ Ayoze Perez
When Perez joined the Magpies in 2014, he was a relatively unknown quantity.
He was a £1.5million arrival from Tenerife, where he’d scored 16 league goals the season prior.
Nothing big was expected of Perez, but in his first season he scored seven Premier League goals and proved what an astute addition he was.
Five years later and he was sold to Leicester for £30million, where he’s since won an FA Cup and featured in the Europa League.
If Munoz can do half as well as Perez did at Newcastle then he’ll be an excellent addition.
Fans will be desperate to see the teenager, eager to see if he really is worth the hype.
In contrast, Perez didn’t quite have the same fanfare. But his debut off the bench seven years ago gave us a glimpse of what an exciting player he was going to be.
This has been a woeful summer for Newcastle United. The signing of a Mexican kid isn’t going to change that.
But if he can emulate Perez in the coming years, he’ll prove to be a wonderful piece of business.
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