Pepe Reina says it was not his decision to leave Liverpool and that he wanted to extend his contract. Photograph: Andrew
Pepe Reina has written a goodbye letter to Liverpool fans in which he has claimed it was not his decision to leave the club. The goalkeeper has joined Napoli on a season-long loan but says he wanted to extend his contract at Anfield. However, he admitted he would have been interested in a move to Barcelona had it materialised.
The goalkeeper has been reunited with the former Liverpool manager Rafael Benítez at Napoli but says he was not consulted before the deal was done. Though he says he is pleased to play for Benítez, he wrote that he was surprised to have been sent to Italy, adding "although it was not my decision to leave I will accept it".
"If I have one regret, it is the way that I am leaving," wrote Reina. "It is only natural that I would be disappointed that the Liverpool management agreed to loan me to Napoli without telling me first, I thought that I deserved better than that even though I understand that difficult decisions have to be taken in football.
"A lot has been made about me informing the club that if an offer came in from Barcelona that I would have liked them to consider it. But I had also spoken to the club about the possibility of extending my contract if the offer was not made. I told the manager that I wanted to play for Liverpool and that Barcelona would only become an option for me if the opportunity arrived, like the rumours said it would, as it would be a chance for me to go back home.
"When it didn't come I was happy to fight for my place so I was surprised that Liverpool decided it was in the club's interests to send me to Napoli instead."
Reina fell down the pecking order at Liverpool after the signing of the former Sunderland goalkeeper Simon Mignolet. Last season there were times when the club's manager, Brendan Rodgers, preferred Brad Jones in goal despite Reina being fit. And now the goalkeeper says that he is happy to be reuniting with Benítez, who he believes is the best manager he was played under.
"I have to look forward to a new challenge with Rafa Benítez, who I consider to be the best manager I have worked with, and I am fortunate to be going from one great club to another," he wrote. "Napoli remind me in many ways of the Liverpool I found in 2005, in all the affection they have shown me on my arrival, in having an ambitious project, even in coinciding and working with Benítez again."
Reina thanked the Liverpool fans for the support they have shown him over the years, saying it was "the most wonderful English club". He expressed regret at not helping the side to win more trophies but says he was humbled by the Hillsborough campaign for justice.
"The club, the staff, the city, the people and the supporters have played a massive part in my life," he wrote. "Liverpool is special in a way that only those who are lucky enough to experience the club close up can understand. It has given me memories that will live with me forever and friendships that will last just as long.
"But more than anything else, it has given me an understanding of what it is like to play for the most wonderful English club. I may not have won as many trophies and medals as I would have liked since joining in 2005 but the experiences I have been a part of are as important as any silverware. I now understand how supporters can lift a team and inspire them to do special things.
"I appreciate that there is something unique about Anfield and the atmosphere it creates. I believe that anything is possible no matter what the situation is because at Liverpool there is no such thing as a lost cause. And I have been humbled by the fight for justice for the 96 which showed me that the Liverpool people will always fight for what they believe in."
Source: Guardian
