Danny Mills has urged Newcastle United to sell their star man Ayoze Perez in the summer should a big money offer arise this summer.
The ex-England international admitted he would be “stunned” if Tottenham, who have been linked with a move this summer, tried to snap up the £45,000-a-week (source: Spotrac) Spaniard who hasn’t impressed him majorly in his five years at the club.
Speaking of the Magpies ace, who was the club’s top scorer this season, Mills told Football Insider: “I’d been stunned if Tottenham signed him, he has been at Newcastle for five years and had half a good season. He has hardly ripped up any trees.
“If you can get a big fee, sell him. I would go for it if I was Newcastle. He is certainly replaceable, especially if they can get decent money to invest back into the team.”
Tottenham were linked with a £24.7million move for Perez, with Mauricio Pochettino keen to beat Italian side Napoli to his signature according to CalcioNapoli24.
Perez enjoyed a great second half of the season which saw his side leap to mid-table in the Premier League. This was after forming a great partnership with record signing Miguel Almiron and Salomon Rondon which saw him finish the campaign with 12 goals, half of those coming in the final five fixtures.
OPINION
Mills is right with his statement on Perez. If manager Rafael Benitez can get upwards of £24.7million then it would be a no-brainer to sell the Spaniard who has not set the Premier League alight consistently enough in his stay at the club. Although Perez definitely has what it takes to improve under Benitez in the coming years, the suggested fee is a big amount and one that the club would find hard to turn down. To compete in the Premier League and earn consistent European qualification, you need a striker that can guarantee you over 15 goals every campaign with ease and the clubs around Newcastle have that. The signing of Miguel Almiron in January proved that you can find genuine quality in the price range that Newcastle would receive and it would give Benitez more of a budget to spend in the summer to improve his squad. At 25-years-old, Perez has scored 48 goals in his five years at the club in 195 appearances since arriving from CD Tenerife and the time would certainly be right to let him go should a big offer come in.