Newcastle United landed a host of summer signings, but one of them has drawn real intrigue given that he could be a diamond in the rough.
Mark Gillespie, Jeff Hendrick and Ryan Fraser all signed on free transfers, whilst Jamal Lewis and Callum Wilson arrived in cash deals to bolster Steve Bruce’s side.
Then, Newcastle struck a bargain deal of just £280,000 for Peruvian playmaker Rodrigo Vilca, luring him to St James’ Park from Deportivo Maldonado.
Vilca, 21, is a relative unknown outside of Peru, but showed promise with Deportivo having notched four goals and three assists in 29 appearances.
Primarily an attacking midfielder, Vilca looks to be a cheap punt for the future, and Newcastle will be hoping he follows in the footsteps of compatriot Nobby Solano by becoming a Newcastle hero.
The reaction in Peru has been strong, as Peruvian national team boss Ricardo Garca told EN24 that he felt Vilca should have been worth much more.
Now, Cristian Herrera – who is taking over Deportivo Maldonado – has told Ovacion that he couldn’t get involved in the Vilca deal because he hasn’t bought the club yet, and feels that the fee should have been higher.
“What we need most right now is to have the management of the club’s bank accounts, the accounting management of the club,” said Herrera. “In Rodrigo Vilca we could not participate and we believe that things could be done better,” he added.
That again suggests that Newcastle have landed an unbelievable bargain by paying less than £300,000 for Vilca, with the anger in Peru continuing after the Magpies’ deal.
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