The mid 2000s were a period of highs and lows for Newcastle United.
Enjoying deep runs in the UEFA Cup and even winning in the Intertoto Cup were marred by some questionable financial decisions and transfers.
Whilst Michael Owen’s signing will perhaps stick out the most to fans, the club did spend £9m on one forward who now regards his stint on Tyneside as perhaps the worst of his career.
Speaking to Spanish outlet AS, the former Newcastle United attacker has remarked about how he was “never really happy” in the North East during his time with the club.
Signed from Deportivo La Coruna in 2005, Luque only managed three goals and two assists in 34 appearances, though he did notably score in the derby against Sunderland.
Coming into the Premier League with a lot of hype, and having beaten Barcelona and Real Madrid to the then 27-year-old’s signature, Luque instantly found the physicality and tempo of the top flight to be too big a jump.
“Their football was very direct, very physical, very different from Spanish football,” he said.
“It was hard for me to adapt. I was never happy there, and I don’t really remember that time, in terms of sports, with any particular fondness.”
Even coming into a great Newcastle team at the time, littered with stars and future cult heroes, it seems that Luque was never 100% satisfied with the move.
The Spaniard recounts having a fallout with Deportivo’s club President Augusto Cesar Lendoiro was what inspired a move to North East, but the move quickly turned into a nightmare.
“There was a rift between Lendoiro and me, which is why I decided to go to Newcastle.”
“I will always be very grateful to Depor, the entire city, and all the Deportivo fans, but playing for Barça was a dream, and when that dream didn’t come true, Newcastle came and I went there, without even knowing where the city or the players of that team were.”
A mere two games into his Newcastle spell, a hamstring injury against Fulham put him on the sidelines, and he wouldn’t grab his first goal for the club came in April at the Stadium of Light: eight months after first signing.
Things never got better for Luque with us, and after two years in black and white, he made the switch to Amsterdam to play for Ajax – where he also endured an injury-blighted spell.