Perez told the Star: “I’m so proud of that goal and the fact it’s been compared to one of the greatest goals in the club’s history. Which one’s better? I’ll let everyone else decide, although they are both very good. Everyone knows about Albert’s goal and I have seen it quite a few times. To this day, fans still talk about the time he lobbed Peter Schmeichel to round off a 5-0 win. Maybe they will be talking about mine in 20 years’ time, although perhaps we are not quite as big as Newcastle were back then because that result took the club to the top of the table. But my goal was also important because it could be the one that makes us safe.
“Players like David Silva, Christian Eriksen and Eden Hazard are some of the best in the world, so you do not try to compare yourself with them. In this team, my most important job is without the ball. Rafa makes it clear that, out of possession, my role is to make our opponents feel uncomfortable and he praises me as much for what I do without the ball as with it. I know everyone looks at goal stats and the number of assists but our manager is interested in aspects of the game others may not notice. If you look at those numbers, you do not get a true picture of what Newcastle is under Rafa. We are a team who play for each other.