27 Jun 2013

Aldo insists: There's 'no way' €15m LFC star will stay at Anfield. Game Over...?

For the first time in years, Liverpool have two top-class goalkeepers on the books, which means that next season - should Pepe Reina stay at Anfield - the Reds will finally have serious competition between the sticks. Simon Mignolet is undoubtedly a very promising goalkeeper, but what are the chances of Reina staying to battle it out for first-choice status? Not good, claims Liverpool legend John Aldridge, who is convinced that the Spaniard's departure is now inevitable.

Reacting to Mignolet's signing this week, Aldo hailed the Belgian as an 'excellent keeper', adding:

"He [Mignolet] will be a big loss to Sunderland, and he'll do really well for us.

"I reckon Pepe's future days are sorted with the new keeper signing. It looks ominous and maybe mutual. I'd love to have Pepe and Mignolet for the squad, but there's no way that will happen with the quality of the two".


Liverpool hero Dietmar Hamann agreed with Aldo:

"If Mignolet signs for Liverpool, I suppose Pepe will be on his way".

Robbie Fowler is also excited about Mignolet's signing. Speaking to reporters in Jakarta, where he is promoting the club's pre-season Asia Tour, Fowler enthused:

"I think he [Mignolet] was a great keeper last year, and I think it's a fantastic deal. He's performed well in the Premier League, made some great saves and obviously he wants to be the Belgian No.1. Playing in the Premier League [with Liverpool] is certainly going to help with that."

I agree with Robbie here - overall, the Mignolet signing is a fantastic deal, and it has several benefits:

* Great competition for Reina, which may force him to up his game and revert to the reliable keeper of 2005-9.

* If €15m-rated Reina decides to leave, the club should recoup Mignolet's entire fee, and save another few million a year on the Spaniard's massive wages.

* That cash may come in handy in paying for one or two more signings during the summer transfer window.

Make no mistake: Mignolet is the future, and Reina will know that. He is already the perpetual back-up man for the Spain national team, and I doubt he'll want to go through the same thing at Liverpool.






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34 comments:

  1. I think (hope) Pepe will stay for 1 more season whilst waiting for Valdes to leave Barca.

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  2. Reina has been not as good for the last 2 seasons but on his day I feel he is even better than Casillas so there is no way he is going play back up to Mignolet at Anfield.

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  3. I have to be honest before signing him I hadn`t paid that much attention to him, however others seem to rate him very highly. I will take there word for it.


    I personally think Reina may go, however it would be very good if Reina stayed until say Xmas. This would work well for all parties involved. Mignolet could be used in cup games giving him time to settle in with less pressure on him, and a chance to get used to who we play and the club. Then at Xmas Reina could step down if Mignolet has showed he can perform well for us and make his move to Barca, giving him time to settle before Valdes eaves next summer.


    I don`t think Mignolet would be that happy about that as I`m sure he wants to play every game esp with the World Cup coming up, but from a team point of view that option would work perfect for us.

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  4. liverpool4life5658:43 pm, June 27, 2013

    Mignolet should be number 1 overall a better keeper. Reina if stays will be on the bench, if we can get 10/11 million for him we should sell...

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  5. pepe has been a great servant to Liverpool and would hate to see him go but we have to move on and progress and mignolet will help us to do that

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  6. I hope Pepe stays, but if he decides to go £15 million will be very handy thank you very much, can't see him staying if he drops down to No2, if he does stay he can teach the new boy some very important lessons, like distribution, and how to dodge beach ball's (LOL)

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  7. your exactly right mate

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  8. my feelings exactly reina can walk next year for nothing sell now and reinvest the money happy with mignolet and would be over the moon with the armenian but cant see it happening

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  9. liverpool4life5659:16 pm, June 27, 2013

    Nah He has 3 years left on his contract? Just it's time for him to move on, been a brilliant player for us, and I agree on Mkhitaryan the sale of reina would boost our kitty for him... :)

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  10. I hope reina gets his wish and re-signs for Barcelona. That what he really wants and he would go as a legend. If he does stay, I think he will be 2nd choice. Why pay £10 million for a sub.

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  11. Pepe has been great but I think he needs a new challenge, Mignolet's stats last season were awesome, far better than Reina's!!!.

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  12. He has 3 years left son!!!

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  13. While I think Mignolet is the future and we have done superbly well to secure his services I still think, if Reina stays, Reina should start. While Simon has done well there are parts of his game that Reina's experience just pips him in. If Simon works alongside Reina for the next year I think we'd see his communication skills improve, as well as his PK and ball distrobutions skills which, in his prime, there was no-one better than Reina in the world.

    The world cup looming is the only reason I think Reina will leave as I can't see any one of them jeprodizing their chances to represent their country. But, if I'm wrong and BR has somehow convinced both to stay on, I can only see it as a plus for us and Mignolet as he'd pick up so much from Reina on the training field. There is a clear improvement in Brad Jones' game from when he started and I read an article some time back where he attributes a lot of it to pepe. If Mignolet picks up some of Pepe's best traits in the next year he will, imo, be well on his way to becoming a mainstay between our sticks and solidify himself as one of the best in the world in the next 5 years.

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  14. Seems an odd situation, doesn't it. If Pepe is not already planning a move then to me it seems a bit excessive for Rodgers to go and buy someone to replace him. Competition is good and he hasn't been at his absolute peak, but no way does it make him a bad keeper. Even in his "rough patch" Pepe was still one of the better keepers in the league and he really doesn't make that many mistakes. He fits the team style, his distribution and vision is brilliant, he's a leader and generally says good things about the club. I've never had an issue with his interview comments over the years, he's not a die-hard Liverpool player and we should never have expected him to be, but he still enjoys the club and the city and feels at home here.


    If Pepe was not already on the way out then I don't get it. We don't need two first choice keepers and Mignolet would be nuts to come to a club where he didn't think he was almost guaranteed to be first choice. Sunderland might struggle at the bottom of the league but at least they're in the top flight and life as a keeper would absolutely not be boring. It's a lot of money to spend on "competition" and like the pundits quoted above I simply don't expect Reina to be here when the season starts. However if both keepers are happy to duke it out then it can only be good for the team. If Rodgers has managed to do that i.e. create a situation where we have two quality international standard keepers fighting for a spot without one or both of them ending up sulking and needing to leave then it's a remarkable thing. Maybe not the best use of money when we need to really beef up in central defence, but an achievement nonetheless.


    For now I think Pepe is still number 1 and Mignolet will have to take his chances when he gets them. No doubt it will up the level during training and the keeping coach will have a great time getting the best out of both of them. I can't recall a team ever rotating keepers on a regular basis, it seems too de-stabilizing, but would it work?


    While both of them are at the club it's a fascinating scenario. I guess we're all very interested to see what happens come the start of the season.

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  15. In either team he's going to have to fight to earn a starting spot, unless Valdes does decide to leave. Doesn't look too promising for Pepe, so on which bench would he prefer to sit? Does he have a better chance at challenging Mignolet or Valdes? Would he be happier collecting his pay packet at Barcelona where he probably thinks his future is?

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  16. of course pepe.s off just a question of when ,just hope we have not signed another david james,or chris kirkland

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  17. Reina won't be going to Barca as they have already signed ter Stegen, yes they have loaned him back, but with Valdes staying for at least one season, Barca will feel ter Stegen is ready to be number 1 by then. The fact that Barca, Arsenal and other top clubs are after Reina shows that Reina is still a top class keeper and we should be keeping him.

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  18. I disagree, Mignolet has the potential to be world class, Reina IS world class. Reina is arguably the best keeper in the world as far as distribution goes, he is an excellent shot stopper, more so than Mignolet and we saw that Reina being dropped did him the world of good, his form improved for the rest of the season. Yes Mignolet is a very good keeper, but Reina is still top class and should be our first choice keeper for at least the next season.

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  19. Having two top class keepers as competition is what will help us progress, when we get back into Europe, we will need that competition. Rodgers, on paper, is putting together a squad capable of challenging for the top 4.

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  20. Well I definitely have no problem with his staying. Having two solid keepers at the club can only be good for us, so long as it hasn't impacted our budget in other areas.

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  21. They may have been better than Reina's stats last season, but Mignolet hasn't played at a big club yet, it will be interesting to see how he performs under the expectations at Liverpool, where some fans will crucify him if he makes a mistake. Overall, Reina has been the best keeper for us since Clemens, and has also been the best keeper in the prem for the past 7 or 8 years since he has been with the club, far better than Cech and yet Cech gets all the plaudits.

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  22. And yet Man Utd who won the league, have two top class keepers competing for the top spot. This isn't something that is unique and if Reina gets injured, which is what happened last season, we have a top class keeper to fill his boots.

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  23. its obvious that Valdes will stay at Barca for 1 more year and Pepe would think that he has a chance to jump to barca next year. He would have spoken with BR and decision might be mutual. He will stay 1 year and try to improve communication and distribution skills of Mignolet before leaving next summer. Good for all the parties involved:- LFC, Barca, Pepe, Mignolet, Valdes .... :D

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  24. I disagree. De Gea was purchased for 17m or something, that is a large amount for a keeper and it's obvious he is the long term number 1. Lindergaard is only a back up. Fergie dropped de Gea after he made mistakes so he learns through experience, not because Lindergaard has the quality to be number 1 for the next few years.


    Even if he doesn't leave this transfer window, Pepe's days are numbered. It's negligent if a keeper on 100K+ a week wages sits on the bench.

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  25. I think Reina has wanted out for some time now and as a result of this his form has dipped, i'm sure we'll cash in on him this summer, that's why we have Mignolet. Pepe won't stay as number two.

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  26. AndWithSuchSimplicity9:10 am, June 28, 2013

    We paid £6M for Kirkland in 2001, and £8M for Dudek on the same day if I remember correctly. One of them was going to be an expensive sub......

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  27. Reina, thanks for everything. But it is time for leaving.

    We need solid back-up. Jones is not solution for back-up.

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  28. So, you buy the "we need two keepers" obviously? Liverpool would surely strengthen other areas. Brad Jones is capable.

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  29. I'd wish Pepe to end his career at LFC if possible but if he wants to go to Barca then he can do that also. I think it'd be awesome to have a top class keeper and another keeper which is full of promise and has the potential to be a world class. The situation at the GK position looks good if Pepe stays.

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  30. I'djust wish reina would end his Liverpool career now and put me out of my misery of not having to watch the worst keeper since mike hooper even westervelt was better and he was crap. 100k aweek jeez he is taking the piss .he is acting the tw"t made up we have signed a new cat .get shut asap when he gets back from warming the bench for spain

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  31. are u mad a goalkeeping coach on 100k a week cos that's what he will be. get shut has been crap for the last 3 years

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  32. I can't answer the Q "Who should be first choice keeper?" as you don't have this option:

    Whoever is playing the best/on form.

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  33. Well yeah he's taking 100K a week but he's not as bad as you think and I feel he's just class all the way. I want to him stay at Anfield but for a lower pay which he won't take so he might end up moving somewhere else in the end for sure. But still I'd love it if he ended his career at LFC. To each his own.

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