Former Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina is still going strong at the age of 41 and is closing in on Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of the most appearances in European competitions.
Liverpool’s former goalkeeper Pepe Reina is on the verge of breaking Cristiano Ronaldo’s record for the most appearances in European competitions at the age of 41.
Reina, who was a key player for Liverpool for nine years, is still going strong at Villarreal, where he started his career. Despite Villarreal’s loss to Marseille in the Europa League, Reina continues to add to his game tally.
Throughout his career, Reina has played in England, Spain, Germany and Italy. The experienced goalkeeper has now played 192 games in UEFA competitions, just five games short of Ronaldo’s record.
Reina could increase this number in the second leg of Villarreal’s knockout clash. Even at his age, and as a backup at the La Liga club, Reina has played all seven of his team’s Europa League matches as they continue to rotate their goalkeepers.
It looks like Ronaldo won’t be adding to his number of appearances as his time in Europe appears to be over after moving to Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, Reina can continue to increase his total.
However, he might play another season to beat Ronaldo’s record, especially with Villarreal needing to make a big comeback after losing 4-0 in their Round of 16 first leg against Marseille. Reina has built up his astonishing total in both the Champions League and Europa League playing for numerous clubs.
He started at Barcelona, then move to Villarreal. It was there he caught the eye of Rafa Benitez, who brought him to Liverpool in 2005. He won the UEFA Super Cup and got to the Champions League final during his nine years on Merseyside.
After Liverpool, he played for Napoli in two spells and moved to more than 100 appearances in Europe. Reina also played for AC Milan and Lazio, and had a short time at Aston Villa.
Now he’s back with Villarreal and wants to keep playing for as long as he can. He recently admitted his fears over retiring.
He once said to The Athletic, “I won’t lie to you. I can’t say I’m not afraid, I can’t say I don’t think there will be a void that I won’t be able to fill.
“The truth is I don’t know. Football has been a way of life for me for so long. You need to prepare yourself and I know it’s not going to be easy.”
