On this day in 1996 former Sunderland and Newcastle goalkeeper Lionel Perez made his debut for the Lads. The flamboyant Frenchman made 84 appearances in his three years on Wearside, before moving to the Mags...
Perez started his career at Nimes after joining the club from school. He made 111 appearances over five years and won promotion with the club in 1991, and a notable teammate of Perez’s that year was the future star Eric Cantona.
Perez would then make a move to Bordeaux, where he would spend most of his time warming the bench, only making 16 appearances in his three years at the club.
In 1996 Sunderland signed Perez as cover for then first-team goalkeeper Tony Coton. It wasn't long after that Perez would grace Wearside with his stocky figure, flowing locks and bared forearms, as in the early stages of the 1996-97 season, Tony Coton would suffer a compound fracture against Southampton.
Perez seized his opportunity with open arms, contributing numerous heroic performances on the pitch. His performance didn’t go unnoticed by fans as he was awarded the supporter's Player of the Year accolade. Perez was signed for a fee of £200,000, a fee that the Frenchman can be said to have repaid. Known for his reflex shot-stopping, Perez would never be short of any highlight-worthy saves. Although, his erratic style would make him unpredictable at times and often unreliable in goal.
While he was a keeper of many top saves, perhaps his best would have been his extraordinary ‘double save’ against Sheffield United in the 1998 Play-Off semi-finals. However, it wasn’t all positive for Lionel on Wearside as the unorthodox keeper was at fault for the heartbreaking Charlton equaliser in the final, in which we lost 7-6 on penalties.
The Wembley heartbreak would prove to be too much for Perez, as only days later, he was signed by Newcastle manager Kenny Dalglish. Shortly after, however, Dalglish departed, and Ruud Gullit replaced him. Gullit sharply promoted Steve Harper to number two, leaving Perez in no man's land, looking for opportunities elsewhere.
After a couple of loans at Scunthorpe and Cambridge, Perez spent the rest of his career bouncing around the lower leagues of English football, with clubs like Chelmsford City and Stevenage Borough, a long way from playing with Cantona at Nimes.
