FORMER Arsenal striker Lucas Perez has opened up about his difficult upbringing and strained relationship with his parents.
Perez kicked off his professional playing career with Rayo Vallecano in 2010 and went on to play across Europe with the likes of Karpaty Lviv and PAOK.
He spent another year in Spain with Deportivo La Coruna before sealing a huge move to Arsenal, where he scored seven goals in 21 appearances.
The striker then joined West Ham and spent another season in London before returning to his homeland with Alaves.
Following short spells with Elche and Cadiz, Perez eventually found his way back to Deportivo.
However, he was forced to leave last month due to personal reasons.
In a recent interview with El Partidazo de Cope, Perez revealed that his strained relationship with his dad, who abandoned him as a child, was a key factor behind his shock exit.
He also opened up about his difficult childhood and explained that both of his parents now demand money from him.
The 36-year-old divulged: “I was raised by my grandparents, my father’s parents.
“When I was two, my parents left me in an orphanage because they couldn’t or didn’t want to take care of me.
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“This season, I received a complaint from my father demanding that I pay child support for the rest of his life.
“From then on, I spent several months until I left Deportivo with a lot of stress and a lot of anxiety because I had to relive very difficult moments in my life.
“When I signed for Arsenal, my mother also sent me a burofax demanding money… but she can’t claim it because she’s not listed in the joint custody.
“My grandparents asked for custody and, later, my grandmother allowed my father to take over. I was lucky to have my grandparents, but they couldn’t last as long as they should have.”
Discussing his recent exit from Deportivo and move to PSV Eindhoven, he continued: “I’m leaving now because the issue with my father continues. I’ve met him several times this Christmas and it’s not a pleasant experience.
“Given that the situation at the club wasn’t right, because I didn’t feel valued or supported, I decided to be honest and tell them that I’m having a hard time stepping aside.
“The club and I spoke… There were two games left to reach the 20-year mark with which I was going to renew and I didn’t want to.
“Two days later, after saying that we were going to take a break, I received a letter from the club asking me to sign a written commitment with them.
“I consider that they don’t know what Deportivo means to me and when there is doubt like that, the best thing to do is to step aside.”
Perez also disputed claims that he left Deportivo for financial reasons, insisting he actually stepped away due to his personal situation.
“What father doesn’t want to be close to his son? Obviously I want to be close, but if my job doesn’t allow it… I was already far away from him,” he added.
“What happened is that they (the media) have echoed a lie and I am partly to blame for having allowed them to buy that lie. The person who released that information did so to hurt me.”
Perez signed a short-term deal upon his arrival at PSV earlier this week.
He is set to remain at the club until June unless his contract is extended.
But the striker will NOT be eligible to play against Arsenal in the Champions League round-of-16 because PSV are unable to add him to their already-submitted squad list.
