It wasn't all that long ago that Juan Jose Carricondo Perez, known to his friends as Juanjo, was being tipped as the next big thing at Barcelona, where he was one of the stars of their youth team, but somewhere along the line it all went horribly wrong and 18 months ago the Spanish giants flogged him to Hearts for a mere £100,000. On his arrival he promised the fans he would treat them to his version of the Hugo Sanchez-somersault after he scored his first goal for the club, but they waited and waited and waited, until they could wait no more. One of the supporters came up with the tune: "Oh Juanjo, oh Juanjo, oh Juanjo - he couldnae hit a cow's arse with a banjo". Four months after his arrival he was offered on loan to Cowdenbeath, who were then second from bottom of the Scottish third division - "the laddie might have got some benefit from being whacked a few times," explained manager Jim Jefferies - but, strangely, turned down the move.
Last Wednesday, though, Tynecastle finally witnessed the Juanjo somersault when, in his 27th appearance for Hearts, he scored his first goal, putting his side 2-1 up in the 90th minute of their game against Kilmarnock. "I was beginning to think by the time I'd score I would be too old to do that kind of thing ever again," admitted our modest hero after the game.
(Footnote: So stunned were his team-mates by the sight of Juanjo finding the net they conceded a Kilmarnock equaliser from the last kick of the game).
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