Pepe Reina fears Liverpool could pay the price after
selling £30m Xabi Alonso to Real Madrid.
Pepe Reina fears that Liverpool manager
Rafa Benitez will rue the departure of compatriot Xabi Alonso
because the midfielder is virtually
irreplaceable.
The Spain star sealed his protracted move to £30million Real
Madrid last week and Benitez moved quickly to bring in £20m Italy
international Albert Aquilani from Roma.
But the Reds No 1 is concerned that his side may struggle to
compensate Alonso's absence in midfield this season, particularly
with captain Steven Gerrard facing a race against time to be fit
for Saturday's Barclays Premier League opener against Spurs, while new
boy Aquilani has already been ruled out for the trip to White Hart
Lane.
'It is very difficult to find a player like Xabi,' the
goalkeeper said. 'Of the central midfielders in the world it is
very difficult to find one as complete as Alonso. He is like a
fabulous orchestra conductor on the pitch. 'He can do everything.
He can play short passes, long passes, he heads it well and he is
tactically very astute.'
Despite losing the services of his compatriot, Reina is still
adamant that Liverpool are in with a serious shout to win an
elusive Premier League title this term.
The Reds were blighted by inconsistent home form during their
quest to prise the championship from the grasp of champions
Manchester
United, finishing runners-up.
But with United boss Sir Alex Ferguson losing key men Cristiano
Ronaldo and Carlos Tevez in the close season, Reina believes there
is great expectation at Anfield.
'This year almost all the big sides have lost an important
player,' he added. 'I believe Everton,
Aston Villa
or Manchester
City could really make it exciting
this season.'