Nobby Solano
The adopted Geordie who became a cult hero at St James' Park
Thank God the international break is over. A two week break 3 games into a new season so we can all watch England beat the Republic of Ireland and Finland without taking their slippers off. Anyways, Premier league football returns this weekend, so what better way to kick it off than an issue dedicated to a cult hero.
After the Kevin Keegan era in the early to mid 90’s, Newcastle were somewhat in transition. Still reeling from missing out on a league title, and with manager Kenny Dalglish breaking up the team that had come so close, Newcastle fans needed an injection of something to keep them believing. Step Forward the Peruvian winger Nolberto Solano, Nol in Peru, Nobby in England. This issue is all about an unknown Peruvian who became one of the most popular figures on Tyneside.
Player Profile
Name: Nolberto “Nobby” Solano
Date of Birth: December 12, 1974
Nationality: Peruvian
Position: Midfielder
Premier League Clubs: Newcastle, Aston Villa, West Ham
Premier League Appearances: 302
Premier League Goals: 49
Premier League Assists: 62
Overview
The first Peruvian to ever play in the Premier league, Nobby Solano was a technically gifted player with excellent ball control and the ability to create goal scoring opportunities. He was typically a right winger, however did occasionally play off the left, cutting in on his right foot as well as more centrally as a number 10. He had a superb right foot, excelling at free kicks and set-pieces, and was renowned for delivering dangerous crosses into the box. Off the pitch, he was admired for his charisma and humility, making him a cult hero at Newcastle United and a respected figure in the Premier league.
Memorable Moments
Solano played for Newcastle over two separate spells, between 1998-2004 and 2005-2007, with an 18 month period at Aston Villa in between. For most of his first spell at Newcastle, he played under the late great Sir Bobby Robson. Although their relationship was generally good, there were occasional strains that many believe led to Solano leaving St James’ for the first time. He was a passionate Peruvian and enjoyed playing for his national side, however Sir Bobby was often critical of the travelling that Solano had to endure during the season and claimed he returned to Newcastle tired and lethargic which impacted his performances. This criticism was difficult to take for Solano who was not going to stop playing for Peru and therefore it left a simmering tension with both men feeling aggrieved.
Despite this, Newcastle endured some good success under Sir Bobby, qualifying for the Champions league two seasons in a row and recording some great victories against some of the so called “Big guns”. Solano was a large part of that success and has since praised Sir Bobby and offered insight into the working relationship they had.
“It was such an honour to play under him. Mind you, I liked winding him up. I’d play my trumpet in a room at the training ground and he couldn’t work out where all the noise was coming from!”
Solano was a bit of a free kick specialist, and scored 9 free kicks during his time in the Premier league which is joint 10th in the all time table alongside Frank Lampard and Jamie Redknapp. This is particularly impressive considering Solano sometimes played second fiddle to Alan Shearer in the free kicks department who scored some beauties himself. His best free kick goal is widely regarded as a curling effort against Leeds on boxing Day 2000. Newcastle went on to win that game 2-1 with Solano also assisting Clarence Acuna for Newcastle’s second.
Outside of his delightful free kicks, his best goal is probably the acrobatic effort he scored for Aston villa against Spurs in 2004. After a flick on from a corner, Solano took two exceptional touches in the box before a spinning overhead kick that nearly took the net off. It sealed a 1-0 win for Villa and took them 11 points clear of Tottenham after 15 games.
The most memorable game that Solano played in is the FA cup final in his first season at the club in 1999. Newcastle had also reached the final the year before, losing 2-0 to Arsenal at Wembley, so there was hope and expectation that they could go one better the following year. Unfortunately for Newcastle, and Solano, they were up against a Manchester United team with Beckham, Giggs, Scholes and Keane and who were going for an unprecedented Treble. Man United won the game 2-0 and neither Solano, or Newcastle would make the final together again.
Solano was sent off 4 times in the Premier league which is a surprisingly high number considering he was generally a cool character on the pitch. Two of those red cards were for handling the ball on the goal line, once against Tottenham in 2001- Darren Anderton missed the resulting penalty but Newcastle went on to lose 4-2. There were three players sent on in this fiery encounter, with Spurs keeper Neil Sullivan and Newcastle’s Kieran Dyer joining Nobby in the changing rooms. Solano was also sent off once during his time at Aston Villa for striking Portsmouth’s Richard Hughes in the face. In what was unusual aggression for Solano, this ended up being his last ever match for Aston Villa as he returned to Newcastle that summer.
In his second spell at Newcastle, Solano played a slightly deeper role and would sometimes fill in at right back. He still managed to score 8 league goals for the club in 58 appearances before his final departure from St James to join West Ham. His main motivation to leave Newcastle for a second time was to be closer to him family who had moved to London.
Opinion
Solano was an attacking winger/ midfielder who did not posses a lot of pace. This was not so uncommon in the 90’s and early 00’s as 4-4-2 was a common system and wide players would often look to get crosses into the box. I always thought Solano and Alan Shearer were a great combination as Solano was a brilliant crosser of the ball and Shearer was brilliant in the air. I wonder how many of his 62 league assists ended up as Shearer goals? Comment below if you know the answer.
If Solano was playing today I think he would play more as a central midfielder, similar to what Kevin De Bruyne does at Man City. In the modern game, nearly every wide player has pace as the role has changed from being creative to scoring goals. Newcastle’s current wide players are Gordon, Almiron, Barnes and Murphy- completely different to Solano, and all with lots of pace.
I am a sucker for a free kick specialist as they are always so pleasing on the eye. Who doesn’t love seeing someone curl a ball into the top corner from 30 yards? Interestingly you dont get so many regular free kick scorers these days. Apart from James Ward Prowse, every other player on the list above has not played in the Premier league for some time. Is that because they are shared around more often these days? Or players are not as good at them? Keepers are better? I might have to do a blog piece on this…..
Did you know?
Solano is an accomplished trumpet player and throughout his career maintained a passion for music, specifically Latin jazz. During his time at Newcastle he formed a salsa band called “The Geordie Latino’s”. The band occasionally played at local pubs and hotels around Newcastle and Solano even serenaded his team mates in the changing room after certain games.
Where are they now?
Since retiring, Solano has stayed very active in football, taking up both coaching and managerial roles. He has managed teams in Peru, Canada and Sweden and in May 2024 returned to the UK to manage Blyth Spartans who are now in the Northern Premier league (7th tier of English football). Despite only being hired in May, Solano was sacked at the end of August after a winless run of 6 games- brutal!
Tell us your memories
As always we want to hear from you. What’s your favourite memory of Nobby Solano? Did you enjoy watching him in the Premier league? Hit the comments, and let us know.
Next week
A player who joined the Premier league in the mid 90’s and first made the attacking wing back role an attractive position. He was also part of the international side who dyed their hair bleach blonde at the 1998 FIFA world cup. Any guesses?