Ayoze Pérez

Written by David Álvarez, Juan I. Irigoyen, Ladislao Moñino, Jon Rivas, Rafael Pineda and Juan L. Cudeiro for El País:

Proving it’s never too late, Ayoze Pérez has earned his first Spain call-up at the age of 30. After a decade in England, at Newcastle then Leicester, the Betis forward has had a great second coming in Spain. He has scored goals but above all his fast interplay helped unbalance opponents and qualify his team for next season’s Europa Conference League. A very versatile footballer, he can play on either wing, as a centre-forward or as a midfielder. “It's his moment and he's going to take advantage of it,” said Luis de la Fuente after naming Pérez in his squad. For a player whose 54 goals in England never convinced previous Spain coaches to pick him, it is just reward for always believing. “I had a hunch that I could go to the European Championship,” he said.