Three times Premier League Golden Glove winner, José Manuel "Pepe" Reina Páez (Pepe Reina) plays as a goalkeeper for Italian side Napoli and Spanish national squad.
He started his career with the Barcelona youth team, making his La Liga debut in the 2000-01 season. He won two UEFA Intertoto Cup with Villarreal and won the 2005 UEFA Super Cup with Liverpool.
Well known for his distribution, ball skills, positioning, shot-stopping, leadership, and ability to save penalties, the 35-year-old holds the record for appearances by a Spanish player in the Premier League, with more than 200 appearances in just his first five seasons.
Early Life and Career of Reina
Born on August 31, 1982, in Madrid, Spain, Pepe Reina holds Spanish nationality belonging to the Spaniard ethnicity/race. He is the son of famed Barcelona and Atlético Madrid goalkeeper Miguel Reina.
He started his career from the youth academy of Barcelona, La Masia in 1999. He played as a first-choice goalkeeper for the Barcelona reserve side, which then competed in the third tier in the Spanish football pyramid.
Reina made 16 appearances for the club serving as understudy to Roberto Bonano during the 2001-02 season. He made his UEFA Champions League debut on October 31, 2001, in Barcelona's 1–0 group stage victory against Fenerbahçe at Camp Nou.
He joined Spanish based football club, Villarreal in July 2002 and went on to spend three seasons with the club. Villarreal reached the semi-final of the UEFA Cup in 2004. In his final season with the club, he helped the club qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in the history.
CAPTION: Early Life and Career of Reina SOURCE: Reina was signed by Liverpool in July 2005, with manager Rafael Benitez hailing him as “the best goalkeeper in Spain.” He made the debut for the club against The New Saints in the first qualifying round for the 2005–06 UEFA Champions League.
He was loaned to Napoli for the 2013-14 season after making 394 appearances for Liverpool. He saved a penalty from Lukas Podolski against Arsenal in the pre-season Emirates Cup tournament in August 2013. The same year in September, he saved a Mario Balotelli penalty in a 2-1 victory over Milan becoming the first goalkeeper to do so in a competitive match.
Reina won the Coppa Italia on May 3, 2014, with Napoli after a 3–1 win against Fiorentina.
He joined German Bundesliga club Bayern Munich on a three-year deal, bringing an eight-year spell with the club to an end. He made his debut for the club in a 4–0 away win against Werder Bremen. His appearance in that match made him the first goalkeeper and Spaniard in history to play in four of Europe's top leagues: Spain, England, Italy, and Germany.
He returned to Napoli on May 15, 2015, on a three-year contract after a one-year spell at Bayern Munich.
On 15 May 2018, it was announced that Reina would move to Serie A rival A.C. Milan on a Bosman transfer.
Reina has been a regular in the Spanish national squad since 2005, mostly as a second-choice keeper after Iker Casillas. He was part of the squad that won the 2010 World Cup and the 2008 and 2012 European Championships.
In October 2008, he and Casillas together broke the national record for the longest time spent without conceding a goal after defeating Estonia 3–0. He was named in Spain’s final squad for the 2018 World Cup, in May 2018.
Reina's Net Worth and Salary
Reina’s net worth is $9 million at present. His current annual salary with Napoli is $3.1 million. He earned an annual salary of $197,230 with the Liverpool FC.
His current market value is $2.3 million (€2 million). He currently plays for Italian side Napoli and the Spanish national team.
Personal Life of Reina
Reina stands the height of 1.8 meters and weighs 92 kg. He was the next door neighbor of Atletico Madrid striker and Spanish international teammate Fernando Torres and was neighbors with teammate Luis Suarez while at Liverpool. He also used to live next door to Maxi Rodríguez before Rodríguez returned to Argentina.
He is a married man and has five children. He married his longtime girlfriend Yolanda Ruiz on May 19, 2006, in Córdoba. The couple is blessed with five children and the family currently resides in Spain.
Though the goalkeeper is mostly seen as a steely and serious figure in the field, he is for his exuberant, jester-like character off the pitch, often entertaining his teammates with jokes and songs.
Reina is a very close friend of David Villa, his Spanish international teammate, and can often be seen spending time together or celebrating victories.
by ab-rikky, 03 Jun, 2018
