Newcastle United boss Alan Pardew doesn't regard Ayoze Perez as a natural goalscorerr.
Perez is hardly the most physically imposing striker to pull on a Newcastle shirt, but he has come to terms with the rough and tumble of English football far more quickly that some of the other new arrivals, and carried the main threat during Sunday's 1-0 derby defeat by Sunderland.
Pardew, whose team play Manchester United on Boxing Day, said of Perez: "Don't get me wrong, I don't want him to be a big brute of a player. He's never going to be that, but there is a strength in holding players off the ball and it's something Remy Cabella needs to gain.
"When he (Perez) first arrived, he looked too light in training and was knocked off the ball far too easily. He didn't hold his own in tight areas. But now he does in training and in matches.
"He's not going to grow much bigger and I don't want him to. That wiry strength is a big part of his game.
"He did a couple of tricks on Sunday that I don't think anybody else on the pitch could have produced. His feet are so fast. He's been a real asset.
"He's not a natural goalscorer, more a natural forward. He can do the other side of the game, a bit like Wayne Rooney. He can mix it in the midfield and score goals."
