2010 World Cup winner offered contract in attempt to thwart Newcastle – report

Wed 21 June 2017 14:15, UK

By Harvey Byrne

Napoli have offered veteran goalkeeper Pepe Reina a new contract in an attempt to thwart Newcastle who are interested in signing him, according to a report.

The Mirror have claimed on their live transfer blog (Wednesday, 10.04am) that the Naples-based club have offered Reina an extra year on his current contract, which is set to expire next summer.

It is also detailed that there will be an £883,950 buyout clause placed in the deal, but Napoli are looking to offer him the extension as they look to secure him for the future.

The Magpies have themselves been heavily linked with Reina this summer given that Rafa Benitez has worked with him previously at both Liverpool and Napoli.

The Spanish boss will be looking at potential new additions as he looks to cement the north east giants in the Premier League and he may be looking to bolster his goalkeeping department.

Reina himself has had a very glittering career with the pinnacle lifting the World Cup in 2010, while he has also won the FA Cup., League Cup, Coppa Italia, Bundesliga and European Championships.

Football Insider verdict:

Reina is a very reputable name and sowed with Napoli in the last campaign where he played 48 matches in all competitions, keeping 14 clean sheets that he still has what it takes to play at the highest level. However, it was also always going to be a massive ask for Newcastle to sign a player who will be expecting to be first choice for a team set to play in the Champions League next season regardless of his relationship with Benitez. Newcastle may now need to lower their expectations, but a player of Reina’s ilk was certainly worth trying for.