Date: 8th February 2011 at 11:32am
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The press it out again today with reports that Pepe Reina could be set to move to Manchester United in the summer for £20m. We all know that Manchester United are in the market for a goal keeper come the end of the season as Edwin van der Sar will be retiring but United will be wasting their time if they think they will be able to steal Pepe away from Liverpool.

In January, Pepe pledged his future to Liverpool, insisting that he would honour his contract with the club.

Reina stated that, “I’m tired of rumours linking me with many teams in England and abroad. I am a man of my word and commitment. I will honour my contract with Liverpool. Stories of these offers are not true. I have not spoken to anyone – ever – and I am 100% a Liverpool player.

“Since I’ve been here, I’ve found an incredible passion – more than I thought from Spain. Liverpool as a club is sacred, it is something special. Being Liverpool’s goalkeeper is a privilege. For now, I just want to win trophies for them.”

Now we are all too aware about these ‘I am committed’ and ‘I will honour my contract’ statements from footballers today. We do not have to look past Fernando Torres who told us the same statements only for him to screw us and go to Chelsea. Being practical, there is nothing stopping Pepe from doing the same thing come the summer but I personally think that Pepe is a bigger man that Torres and he will stick to his word. (I hope!)

Now it is being said that Pepe spoke to a Spanish Radio Station yesterday and said, “Yes, well, Van der Sar will hang up his gloves in the summer so of course they are looking. I can’t do anything. I can’t say anything logically as I have a contract with Liverpool.

“Of course, one likes to fight for titles and be in a team that does that. We always fought to be in the Champions League and tried to win the title, but unfortunately it hasn’t been the case in the last couple of years. I won’t lie – I want to play in the Champions League and challenge for titles.”

So looking at this scenario, why will Pepe Reina not go to Manchester United? Three points stick out to me:

1) Can Manchester United afford the £20m Liverpool would be after and the high wages that Pepe would most likely want? United are not in the best financial position right now and I can not see them spending that much on a goal keeper.

2) Pepe will have to look closely at the future of Manchester United. He just has to look at the fallout Rooney had with Ferguson when Rooney was blaming the club for having a lack of ambition. Rooney was later convinced to stay but the writing is on the wall the United are a club on the verge of going down. Now does Pepe really want to join a potential sinking ship?

3) Pepe is next in line to take over the Liverpool captaincy from Steven Gerrard. With Liverpool headed for success in the next couple of seasons, what better a thrill or achievement would Pepe get than being the captain who lifts the Premier League title for Liverpool? Now would one through away the possibility of such an honour?

4) Liverpool will never sell a player to Manchester United, especially a star player to like Pepe! United refused to sell Gabriel Heinze to Liverpool so we should also refuse to sell Reina to them! If Reina thought the abuse Torres got from us was bad for joining Chelsea, it will be 10 times more if he joins United!

 

17 responses to “Why Pepe Reina will NOT go to Manchester United”

  1. Michael Roberts says:

    I think he is going and i think we cant stop him !! but we can stop him going to Manchester United !!! i mean if we let him go there then that means we are a nothing club and the contracts we have are nothing !! LIVERPOOL FC HAVE TO COME OUT PUBLICLY AND STATE THAT NO PLAYER WILL EVER BE SOLD TO THE SCUM , JUST LIKE OLD FUNGUS RED NOSE SAID ABOUT UNITED PLAYERS WILL NEVER BE SOLD TO LIVERPOOL ! WE AS THE FANS HAVE TO DEMAND THIS FROM OUR CLUB , AND NOT A SHORT CRAPPY STATMENT BEATING AROUIND THE BUSH AND NOT GETTING TO THE POINT !! IT HAS TO STATE THE WORDS ” LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB WILL NEVER SELL ANY OF ITS PLAYER TO MANCHESTER UNITED ” END OFF !

  2. Zico says:

    As with Torres, as with all players – no player is bigger than the club. If Pepe doesn’t want to stay then we should look to get the maximum transfer value and let him go – to whoever is willing to pay it. We saw how quickly we got over Torres! Of course, I will be disappointed to lose Pepe if he chooses to leave as he has been superb for us but thats football. I would rather have a fully committed keeper than one just angling for a move.
    Anyway, on our current form who can say that we wont finish in 4th spot above both Spurs and Chelsea. I think we now have a few team looking over their shoulder nervous about us.
    A good summer transfer window and we will be strong contenders next season. YNWA

  3. Arabica says:

    Reina has a release clause stating that if Manchester United offer enough that have to give him up. And since when are Manchester United going down. They happen to be at the top of the league, a league which liverpool haven’t won in over 20 years. Not to mention the fact that liverpool’s key men, steven gerrard and jamie carragher are getting pretty old, meaning they lose a lot of leadership. Liverpool are not ready to compete with the top five.

    • Andy says:

      I think you’ll find that youre about to face the same problems that Liverpool FC had with Hicks & Gillet. Your income is servicing your debt. you had to sell Ronaldo in order to post a £6m profit and you have the bond issue due for maturity next year. Its not clear that your owners actually have the cash to repay it, which means another loan at higher interest rates and with rates likely to start rising soon, either you repay (sell your best players) or have it taken from you at a reduced price.

      You say Carragher & Gerrard are getting old…. I’ll refer you to Giggs (39) probably your best player this season. With VDS retiring, Ferdinand, Giggs, & Scholes you can hardly claim to be a youthful side yourself.

      As for Reina, of course he wants CL football. I want the club I support to have it too. It doesnt mean Im going to support another club just we dont have it yet.

      As for competing with the top 5, youre right, but we will be ready by March. I mean 4 wins on the bounce is hardly good form is it? But then I forgot, there is also £53m pounds worth of new strikers to fit into the side as well.

      Youve had a good run, now its time to let the King reclaim his crown and his Empire. Fergie will retire this season having taken LFC’s championship record because he knows where the title will be going next year, and when he retires the value of your club will plummit and the asset stripping will begin. The vultures are beginning to circle. You need to worry about your own club before you start thinking about £20m goalkeepers. This is why you havent bought anyone recently. “No Value ” in the market is rubbish…… you cant afford it anymore.

  4. adam says:

    I love it when anonymous posters on the internet claim to have knowledge of the precise details of a player’s contract. Let’s be clear, any suggestion that Reina has a release clause is speculation. Still, from my point of view, if United want to fork out 25 or 30 million for the guy and he wants to leave then it’s not big deal. Liverpool’s new mantra is that we spot top young talent and our owners are willing to lay out the cash to get the players we need. Good keepers don’t cost that much, it’s just an absurd price so I’d happily take the money and replace him with a young prospect who will be just as effective.

  5. Jonski says:

    Arabica what are you on about Reina has a release clause allowing him to go to Man UTD, are you his agent or something you muppett! Anyway £20m wouldn’t be enough to sell him, he is on the top 4 keepers in the world and has a long contract, if Buffon was worth £30m all those years ago then Pepe is worth at the very least the same in todays market! It’s likely Kenny will be made the permanent manager before the summer, if he continues to do well, do you really think he would sell him to you lot, I’d rather Everton have him for a fiver than you lot gert him and I am sure Kenny will be thinking along the same lines. I also doubt UTD will have funds in the summer under the current owners to spen £30m+ on a keeper, those days for now are gone for Man UTD.

  6. JAB the Shed says:

    Pepe will only leave for Spain or Italy. He will be in the sticks next year for sure!

    He will give the king a chance to shine and bring in the enforcements needed. As long as we show that we can compete for the top four and maybe the league he will stick around. He has integrity and loyalty. The best keeper in the league by a country mile!

  7. Baldrick's Trousers says:

    It’s quite a simple, and one that so many journo’s cannot seem to get their head round.

    LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB WILL NEVER SELL ANY PLAYER TO MANCHESTER UNITED.

    We do believe that if a player wants to leave, there is no point in keeping a disillusioned and unmotivated player on the books. If said player is open and honest the Liverpool management will help him to find a suitable move if he helps us obtain suitable recompense for his sale.

    We will try to avoid selling a player to a direct rival. But as far as Manchester United is concerned, this rule is inviolate. So I’ll state it again:

    LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB WILL NEVER SELL ANY PLAYER TO MANCHESTER UNITED.

    So what of Pepe Reina. Understandably, Reina is worried that Liverpool will be unable to challenge. However, the club is now on the up. Now that we are unburdened by debt we are much better positioned than many of our direct rivals to be able to revamp our squad within UEFA’s Financial Fair Play Rules. Our new owners have already demonstrated their financial commitment, and there is more to come in the summer. With goal keepers generally enjoying a longer career than their outfield counterparts, we hope that Reina will realise that he will have the opportunity to challenge for the highest honours with Liverpool Football Club.

    In the meantime, let me finish on the following thought, just in case you missed it the first two times:

    LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB WILL NEVER SELL ANY PLAYER TO MANCHESTER UNITED.

    Okay? Have you got that?

  8. rouman says:

    if reina does go it will be to arsenal not the mancs. and if he stays in england thats were he will go.i hope he stays but who knows thease days ? only him..

  9. jack says:

    I think he does want to go. But no way should he be sold to Man u or any of our other rivals in the PL. Sell him abroad for the highest price. If we sell to United then we will have a reputation for not being able to keep our best players even to our biggest rivals. This has to stop somewhere.

  10. anteater says:

    I don’t think Reina will leave after one season of not qualifying for the CL. Not after two either. As a goalie he has time on his side. And he is brighter than Torres. He can see that Liverpool are moving in the right direction. Why would he want to leave? Anyway, 20m? You’re having a laugh. If the fake Ronaldo is worth 80m, Torres is worth 50m, Kaka is, what have they paid for him. I could go on. Reina is worth much, much more than 20m and has a contract than runs another five years or so.

  11. Steve South Africa says:

    Emotionally I could detach myself from the whole Torres affair because he wasn’t playing that well, we got a great price, thre was more than an adequate replacement for him and whilst not ideal it was Chelsea who are not our arch enemies. Reina is a completely different story. He is one of the best keepers around, he has great team spirit and 20 mill is chicken feed. If he wants to go desperately then we may have to accept it. But NEVER ever to Man U. I’d rather he sat on the bench. Or we sold him for nothing than let him go to man u. I hope King Kenny and Henry feel the same way. If that ever happened I’d be p’d off beyond compare.

  12. pbozz says:

    Please give it a rest with this next year is our year. That’s all we have heard for the last 20 years. As for the debt. £200 million of it has just been payed off and the bonds will be extended until 2017.
    Face it if any ship is sinking it is your which is why Torres got out and is why Reina wants out. 4 wins in a row and your going to win the league next season. Do me a favor. And it’s good to see that you are all being manipulated by your new owners who actually ended up this transfer window up, if you work out the income for the sales of Babel and Torres, And the outgoing’s for Suarez and Carroll. £35 million for Carroll i’m still laughing about that one.
    Anyway it will be good to win 19 and then a few more after that.
    Enjoy your struggle for the Europa league.

    • Andy says:

      Bonds mature, they dont get extended, (this tell me you know nothing about finance), they get re-issued which means you will have to pray that the current holders chose to go for re-investment, which means they will have to offer a better return (higher interest rate) as we all know that interest is due to rise over the next few years.

      You may have paid down the debt at the club, but the owners still owe it to someone which means that when creditors come knocking, they will see assets, ie the club. Take your head out the clouds. The green and gold know its true. Just go find out what happened to Hicks & Gillet. The domino effect didnt start at LFC, it started in America.

      Your blind loyalty to the club is admirable but dont try and kid anyone you know anything the financial setup at Man Utd.

      As for net spend, remind me just how much of the £90m from the sale of Ronaldo have you re-invested in Players? Oh yes, I remember, it paid for Rooney’s pay rise.

      Lets take a quick look at your squad shall we.
      VDS – Retiring
      Evra – Good Player
      Hargreaves – Crocked
      Ferdinand – starting to show his age
      Brown – good player
      Owen – Past it
      Andrerson – Average
      Berbatov – Quality but inconsistant
      Rooney – Getting worse each season
      Giggs – arguably your best player this season age 39
      Smalling – Who?
      Ji Sung – Above Average only
      Hernandez – has kept your season going
      Vidic – Never been the same since Torres showed how to tear him apart
      Carrick – Unsung hero or overated average player hmmm
      Nani – Really stepped up this year
      Scholes – probably getting past it one more season?

      O’Shea, Evens, Fletcher, Valencia, Obertan, Gibson.
      Doesnt sound too inspiring does it for the future. There are quite a few players that need replacing and with your cash problems, I be worried if I were you.

  13. Mary says:

    “If Reina thought the abuse Torres got from us was bad for joining Chelsea, it will be 10 times more if he joins United!”

    GOD HELP YOU!!! You’re f***ing insane!!!!!!! whta the hell is wrong with so many people???

  14. Gab says:

    Not sure that abuse should be what makes a player decide where he is going to play. But any player who signs for Liverpool must know that a transfer to Man Utd is just not going to happen. The only way it could happen is if he has a clause in his contract, but I doubt it. Going to Chelsea would be a mistake, Arsenal are too tight fisted, so there is only City really. If they gave us Joe Har and Micah Richards, that might not be a bad deal. The most likely destination for him would surely be Spain, though. I’m not so sure that he wouldn’t get a chance at Barcelona, to be honest. If he wants to go, fine, he’s a good keeper but not without weaknesses, like any player, and there are plenty of keepers of the required level to challenge for trophies. And they’d be cheaper than him. As the owners seem to want to sell to buy, a 30 million sale of Reina, plus funds from Aquilani and a few others, and we would be able to rebuild the entire squad and keep bringing through the youngsters. We could bring in another four players in the 15 million bracket. I’d be sorry to see him leave, but if we spent the proceeds wisely, we could be stronger again, as we are with the sale of Torres.