Alvaro Negredo is rapidly becoming a cult hero in the blue half of Manchester. Following in the revered footsteps of the original 'Feed the Goat' Shaun Goater and to a much lesser extent 'Feed the Elk' Nicolas Anelka; Senõr Alvaro has all the credentials to be considered heir apparent to one of the best and most cherished Manchester City strikers in recent memory - Leonard Shaun Goater MBE.
Negredo is big, strong and fearless - hence the nickname 'the Beast'. This was first bestowed on him back in Spain; La fiera de Vallecas was the Spanish title he was given and City fans have continued the sentiment. He now has 9 goals in 16 appearances, so just like Goater he scores regularly - hence the use of the famous Goater song. Unlike Goater he has an excellent first touch and as yet has not scored goals for City with his shoulder, backside or knee - but give him time.
Negredo has been taken to the City faithful's collective heart because he fits with their idea of what a true professional should be; honest, hardworking, tough and resilient - just like them. These are rare assets in the modern day professional footballer, who is more likely to kiss the badge to gain fans favour, than put the hard work in on the pitch. In this City team peppered with gifted footballers, including probably two of the best in the world, Kun Aguero and Yaya Toure, it still takes these personal attributes demonstrated by Negredo, for a player to be really adored by City fans (following in the footsteps of Goater, Dickov, Morrison, Bell and Doyle, who also shared these qualities).
Shaun Goater scored 87 goals in 184 league games so almost 1 goal every 2 games, but only 13 of those were in the top flight. With Negredo we are talking about a step up in quality from Goater (Shaun would probably admit), the Spaniard is someone who can score at the very highest level with the same regularity, whether from distance or tap-ins, as the lone striker or in a front two partnership. The Beast may well be the next on the list of great strikers to grace the Manchester City shirt and be adored by the blue faithful. With Sergio Aguero in the team that would really be some achievement.
Source: DSG
