£5.7m Mike Ashley signing announces retirement - years after controversial Newcastle United striker decision

Former Newcastle United striker Xisco has announced his retirement from football at age 37.

The Spaniard joined Newcastle under controversial circumstances from Deportivo La Coruna in 2008 for £5.7million. The transfer, and the loan signing of Ignacio Gonzalez from Valencia, ultimately led to Kevin Keegan's departure as manager for the second time.

In Keegan's autobiography, he said: "It wasn’t Mike [Ashley]’s beer-guzzling that upset me that day. It was the fact that Tony Jimenez, the executive who had been put in charge of Newcastle’s transfer business, had informed me we were spending £5.7million on a Spanish player called Xisco whom nobody from the club had ever seen play.

“On the same day the Xisco bombshell was dropped, I had also found out a Uruguayan by the name of Ignacio Gonzalez was joining us as a 'favour' for two South American agents."

Xisco scored on his Newcastle debut after coming off the bench in a 2-1 defeat against Hull City at St James' Park. It would prove to be his only goal for the club as he went on to make a further 10 appearances for The Magpies before his contract was eventually terminated in 2013.

During his time contracted at Newcastle, Xisco had loan spells at Racing Santander and Deportivo before joining Córdoba. He then spent time at Mallorca, Muangthong United, Osasuna, Penarol and Alcoron before joining Atletico Baleares in 2023 where he would end his career.

His final appearance came as captain in a 0-0 draw with Linares in the Spanish third tier on January 3, he announced his retirement a month later.

Speaking to Spanish news outlet Ultima Hora, Xisco reflected on his playing career but refrained from mentioning his time at Newcastle.

"It was at Dépor that I made my debut in the First Division and scored my first goals, fulfilling the dream of any player," he said. "The most gratifying moments were the promotions with Córdoba and Osasuna, where from the first moment I felt very identified with the philosophy of the club and we formed a big family.

"The pity has been that due to injuries and other issues, I have not been able to contribute as much as I would have liked to the team [Atletico Baleares]."