Jose 'Pepe' Reina

First Name	José Manuel
Surname	Reina
Squad Number	25
Position	Goalkeeper
Height	1.88m
Weight	92 kg
D.O.B.	31 Aug 1982
Town of Birth	Madrid
Country of Birth	Spain
Nationality	Spanish
Total Appearances	355
Total Goals	0

A member of the ‘La Furia Roja’ that has won the 2008, 2012 European Championships and also the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Pepe Reina is considered as one of the best keepers in English Premier League. Reina, a good stopper himself, is considered the best distributor of the ball.

Reina, with a reputation of being a penalty spot specialist, was signed by Liverpool FC in 2005, by Rafael Benitez, the then LFC manager (who went onto state that ‘Reina is the best keeper in Spain’), after Liverpool had won the 5^th UEFA Champions League title, went onto win the 1^st honour as an LFC player in his 1^st season, when LFC won the FA Cup in penalties against West Ham United, where he stopped 3 of the 4 penalties taken by Hammers. He was an instant hero at the kop.

Soon, he found himself representing Spain in FIFA World Cup 2006, held in Germany. Though, Madrid’s own Iker Cassillas and Valencia’s Santiago Canizares made sure that Reina didn’t get an opportunity to play in the finals.

Back again for Liverpool in 2006-07 season, he went onto destroy the club record of most clean sheets in 1^st 50 matches. He had 3 more clean sheets than Ray Clemance, a Kop legend.

Same season, Liverpool had all to thank Pepe for his work between the sticks. A Champions League semi-final 2^nd leg which went to penalties, after just a goal deficit from the 1^st leg against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge, was saved for Liverpool by Pepe as Liverpool found themselves in the finals of the Champions League for the 2^nd time in 3 years against the same opposition, in the form of A.C Milan. Although, Liverpool ended on the losing side this time round, Reina had won 2 medals in his 1^st two years at Liverpool.

Even though at the end of 2008, Reina had collected the Golden Gloves for the most clean sheets for the 3^rd successive year, he didn’t win a medal nor did the Reds win any trophies.

But then, in the same year, he was called up to the Spain National Team for Euro 2008 in Austria – Switzerland, which was eventually won by Spain; their 1^st major trophy since 1964, earning him a Gold medal.

The matured stopper then went on from strength to strength and signed for a 6 year contract in April 2010. Upon signing, he said: "It's probably the best news of my life that I'll be here for the next six years. Me and my family are really happy here. To play for Liverpool is very special. My kids enjoy it and they have picked up the Scouse accent already. I am really proud of that. In the years ahead they will speak much more Scouse too."

The Spaniard did not feature for a single minute as Spain won their first World Cup but images illustrated how important he was to morale within Vicente del Bosque's squad. It was Reina who took centre stage with the microphone as the heroes were welcomed home by hoards of fans in Madrid.

Only frustrating seasons followed as Liverpool failed to win a single trophy and also continued to miss out on Champions League football, but Reina was always a loyal Kopite and in February 2012, Liverpool won its 1^st trophy since 2006 FA Cup and was rewarded with a medal.

Later the same year, Reina was the 2^nd keeper for Spain as they defended their European title successfully in Poland – Ukraine.

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