Leonardo Ulloa smiles a lot. That should be noted because, even when conversation turns serious, a flash of his sizeable gnashers is not far behind. At 28 years old, he is finally performing at a level he has worked so hard to reach.

From a small city in the heart of Argentina, he moved 1,000 miles from home, aged 15, to gain attention for his football and then relocated to Spain six years later to support his wife and baby daughter financially.

One season in La Liga with Almeria stood out among many more in the second tier, before Nigel Pearson took a calculated £8 million gamble to bring him from Brighton to the Barclays Premier League this summer.

Suffice to say, Ulloa’s arrival in Leicester was starkly different to that of compatriot Angel di Maria.

But strikes against Everton, Arsenal, Stoke and, most memorably, two against Manchester United in last week’s remarkable 5-3 victory, have earned his new team eight points and give cause for his sunny demeanour as he talks about his tough career, his enlarged family and the tattoos that run along his left arm.

“I would not change anything of what I have been through to get here,’ says Ulloa, briefly speaking Spanish. “What I am doing now is the fruit of what I fought for.

“This year I said to Brighton I would not stay because I had a very important chance and I did not know if it would come again.”

In English, he adds: “Because I came from the Championship, maybe people did not expect this from me. But I am a striker and I work every day for that. Now I need to work more because I want to continue to score goals and help the team.”

There are moments that make Ulloa turn sombre, such as when he discloses that his father Adrian Segundo — who he calls `Daddy’ in English — has not been able to watch him this campaign as he awaits surgery on his stomach in Argentina.

Then there is the tattoo of a symbol representing his grandfather, Jose Omar, who would stand over the grill during weekly barbecues and feed his 11 children and their offspring before sitting at the head of the table to hold court.

“He was really important to the whole family,” says Ulloa. He kisses that tattoo on his wrist after each goal before pointing to the sky.

He also has inkings in tribute to his two girls Sofia and Morena, aged seven and one. “This is the time when my daughter Sofia was born,” he says, pointing to a clock face. “And this is the dove of peace for Morena.”

Ulloa grew up in General Roca, a city of 86,000 people in northern Patagonia. Unlike Buenos Aires, home of Sergio Aguero, or Rosario, birthplace of Di Maria and Lionel Messi, few talent-spotters frequent Roca.

He made the lengthy journey to Comodoro Rivadavia to play for Comision de Actividades Infantiles (CAI) aged 15, eventually being spotted by Buenos Aires team San Lorenzo two years later.

“CAI is a community team that brings young players from Patagonia and develops them,” explains Ulloa. “It was my chance. My mother suffered a lot. She has three sons and I am the youngest. It was hard but worth the pain.”

Aged 21, he joined Castellon in the Spanish second division. “I had a wife and a daughter and I was obliged because things were not good. I had no other path.”

There were 16 goals in his debut season but Castellon got relegated in his second. Almeria took him to La Liga in June 2010 and, the following January, Ulloa scored an instinctive goal to earn a point against Real Madrid.

“It’s difficult to explain,” he smiles. “We lost 8-0 against Barcelona and then drew 1-1 with Real Madrid. We played all the time to avoid relegation, but I enjoyed it.”

The drop followed once more, though. That triggered his most prolific spell to date — 28 goals in 38 Segunda Division games.

In January 2013, Gus Poyet paid £2m to take him to Brighton and, 26 goals in 58 games later, Pearson made him Leicester’s No 1 target.

The club record fee was a risk, but Esteban Cambiasso has also arrived and Ulloa is grateful he can pick the brains of the Argentine star in his native tongue. But when it is proposed the two are close, he jokes: “He’s not my friend!”

— Daily Mail