Following eight consecutive seasons as Liverpool's first-choice keeper, Reina spent the 2013–14 season on loan atNapoli, where he was reunited withRafael Benítez, the coach who signed him to play for Liverpool in 2005. During his loan tenure inNaples, Reina was part of the side that won theCoppa Italia in2014. Reina then completed a permanent move toBayern Munich in 2014, where he was the second-choice keeper for behindManuel Neuer. Reina returned to Napoli on a permanent deal in 2015, where he remained until 2018 when he signed for Milan. In January 2020, he completed a loan move toAston Villa, before returning to Serie A withLazio in August 2020. After two seasons at Lazio followed by another stint with Villarreal, Reina joinedComo in 2024, where he finished his career.
Reina made the fourth-highest number of appearances by a Spanish player in thePremier League,[3] with more than 200 appearances in just his first five seasons, 108 of the 219 appearances beingclean sheets.[4] In the 2010–11 season, he kept his 100th Premier League clean sheet for Liverpool in a 3–0 win over Aston Villa.
In July 2002, Reina joinedVillarreal and went on to spend three seasons with the Valencian club.[10] In 2004, Villarreal reached the semi-final of theUEFA Cup and, in Reina's final season at the club, he helpedEl Submarino Amarillo qualify for theUEFA Champions League for the first time in its history.[6]
Reina was signed by Liverpool from Villarreal in July 2005, with managerRafael Benítez hailing him as "the best goalkeeper in Spain". Reina made his Liverpool debut against Total Network Solutions, now known asThe New Saints, in the first qualifying round for the2005–06 UEFA Champions League.
For the2005–06 season, Reina took over as Liverpool's first-choice goalkeeper, relegating2005 UEFA Champions League final heroJerzy Dudek to the bench. At the start of the season on 17 August 2005, Reina made his international debut forSpain in a friendly againstUruguay. Spain won 2–0.
The season turned out to be successful for Liverpool as they improved upon the previous year's league placing and won theFA Cup. It was also a huge success personally for Reina as he madeLiverpool records. On 3 December 2005, Reina kept his sixth consecutiveclean sheet againstWigan Athletic in thePremier League, to break the Liverpool club record for successive clean sheets in thePremier League. He surpassedDavid James's record of five games, from the1996–97 season. Reina's run ended at eight league games, whenJames Beattie scored forEverton in Liverpool's 3–1Merseyside derby win on 28 December 2005. Reina also broke Liverpool's clean sheet record in all competitions, with 11 between October and December 2005.Mineiro, ofSão Paulo, finally scored past him on 18 December 2005, during the2005 FIFA Club World Cup final.
On 5 February 2006, in a Premier League match againstChelsea, Reina, having made a challenge onEiður Guðjohnsen moments earlier, wassent off for violent conduct againstArjen Robben. Robben, who fell to the ground,[11] was described as "going down like he'd been sledgehammered" by punditAlan Hansen. Liverpool lost the match 2–0 and Reina was given a three-match suspension. On 16 April 2006, Reina celebrated his 50th appearance for Liverpool by keeping a clean sheet againstBlackburn Rovers. As a result, he holds a Liverpool record for the fewest goals conceded by a goalkeeper in his first 50 matches. The previous record was set byRay Clemence in1970–71, when he conceded 32 goals. Reina conceded just 29. In May 2006, Reina was awarded the Premier League'sGolden Glove award for keeping 20 clean sheets in the2005–06 season.
In the final domestic match of the season – the2006 FA Cup final on 13 May 2006 – Reina made a number of errors to allowWest Ham United to lead 3–2.Steven Gerrard took the match toextra time with a late equaliser. The match ended 3–3 and went topenalties, where Reina saved three out of four penalties to gain the cup win.
During the2006–07 season, Reina's status as Liverpool's number-one goalkeeper was further cemented after Jerzy Dudek conceded nine goals within a week in two cup ties againstArsenal.[12] After the2007 Champions League semi-final first-leg against Chelsea, Reina was awarded man of the match by Liverpool supporters after a string of superb saves, including two saves from midfielderFrank Lampard. He repeated his good form in the second leg, keeping a clean sheet. The match went to a penalty shootout, where Reina reinforced his penalty-saving reputation, stopping two of the three Chelsea kicks as Liverpool won 4–1. On his return home from the match, he discovered his house inWoolton had been burgled.[13]
Three weeks later inAthens, Reina became only the third player to follow in his father's footsteps by appearing in aEuropean Cup final.[citation needed] Liverpool lost2–1 in the final toAC Milan. Reina signed a new five-year contract Liverpool on 7 June 2007.[14]
In August 2007, Reina again won the Premier League's Golden Glove Award for the second successive season, after keeping 19 clean sheets in the2006–07 Premier League campaign.[15]
Reina began the season by saving a penalty fromPortsmouth'sNwankwo Kanu to help his team to a 0–0 draw.[16] On 2 February 2008, Reina became the quickest goalkeeper in Liverpool history to reach 50 clean sheets. He hit the milestone during a 3–0 win againstSunderland, on his 92nd league outing, beating the previous record by three.[17]
Reina played all 38Premier League matches for Liverpool and won his third consecutive Golden Glove award with 18 clean sheets.[18]
Reina played every minute of Liverpool's2008–09 Premier League season, keeping 20 clean sheets,[18] as the team finished as league runners-up with 86 points.[19] On 22 March 2009, Reina kept his 100th clean sheet for Liverpool in a Premier League match againstAston Villa.[20] During the match, he assisted a goal forAlbert Riera with a long pass in Liverpool's 5–0 win.[21]
Reina again played all 38 matches during the2009–10 Premier League season, keeping 17 clean sheets.[22] He tied with Chelsea'sPetr Čech for the Golden Glove award for the season, but Čech was awarded the trophy with a superior goals-to-game ratio. Reina was named Liverpool's Player of the Season for2009–10 with 75% of the vote.[22]
On 17 October 2009, Liverpool were beaten 1–0 by Sunderland with a goal fromDarren Bent, which was deflected past Reina via a beach ball thrown from the crowd.[23]
In April 2010, Reina signed a new six-year contract with Liverpool.[24]
Reina got his2010–11 season off to a poor start, with a late own goal to give Arsenal a 1–1 draw in Liverpool's opening Premier League fixture. ManagerRoy Hodgson, clubcaptain Steven Gerrard and vice-captainJamie Carragher were all quick to get behind Reina and back him to not let the mistake affect his season.[25][26]
Reina captained the team inEuropa League matches againstNapoli andSteaua București due to the absences of Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher. On 6 December 2010, Reina captained Liverpool in the Premier League in a 3–0 victory against Aston Villa.[27] This clean sheet gave him his 100th in 198 league matches, the fastest Liverpool goalkeeper to reach the milestone.[28][29][30]
On 9 May 2011, Reina played his 150th consecutive league match for Liverpool.[31] He was one of only two players to have played in all of Liverpool's league games for 2010–11 season.[19] In June 2011, Reina underwent doublehernia surgery.[32]
Reina announced on 3 September 2011 that he wanted to stay at Liverpool for another five or six years.[33]
On 29 November 2011, Reina broke the club record for most clean sheets in a 2–0Football League Cup quarter-final win over Chelsea. The record had previously been held by Ray Clemence andBruce Grobbelaar.[34]
On 1 April 2012, Reina received a red card in a 2–0 defeat againstNewcastle United due to violent conduct on Newcastle playerJames Perch.[36]Reina's suspension ended his streak of 183 consecutive Premier League appearances which had begun in August 2007.[37] He missed Premier League matches against Aston Villa and Blackburn Rovers, as well as the FA Cup semi-final against Everton on 14 April.[38]
On 5 May, Reina started for Liverpool in their 2–12012 FA Cup final defeat to Chelsea.[39]
Towards the end of the2012–13 season, rumours suggested thatVíctor Valdés was to leaveBarcelona forMonaco and Reina was to be his replacement. According to his father, an agreement had been reached for Reina to sign, but when Valdés chose to stay at Barcelona for another season, no move took place.[42] In anticipation of Reina's departure, Liverpool had signedBelgian international goalkeeperSimon Mignolet from Sunderland.[43] As a result, on 29 July 2013 Reina completed a loan move toSerie A sideNapoli, reuniting him with former Liverpool managerRafael Benítez.[44]
Reina was loaned out to Napoli for the2013–14 season. Reina subsequently expressed his disappointment that Liverpool agreed the loan with Napoli before informing him.[45] He had made 394 appearances for Liverpool prior to the loan.[46]
In August 2013, Reina saved a penalty fromLukas Podolski against Arsenal in the pre-seasonEmirates Cup tournament,[47] and in September, in a 2–1 win over Milan in September, he saved aMario Balotelli penalty, the first goalkeeper ever to do so in a competitive match.[48]
On 28 September, Reina declared that his Liverpool career was likely over.[49]
On 8 August 2014, Liverpool confirmed[51] Reina had joined theBundesliga clubBayern Munich on a three-year deal, bringing an eight-year spell with the club to an end. He wore the number 23 shirt for Bayern, the same number he wears for theSpain national team.[52] On 14 March 2015, Reina made his debut for Bayern, starting in a 4–0 away win againstWerder Bremen.[53] His appearance in that match meant that he became the first goalkeeper and Spaniard in history to play in four of Europe's top leagues:Spain,England,Italy, andGermany.[54][55][56]
On 9 May, as Bayern had already won the2014–15 Bundesliga and had a Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona to come, regular goalkeeperManuel Neuer was rested for their home match againstFC Augsburg and Reina started. He was given a straight red card after 14 minutes when he conceded a penalty with a foul onRaúl Bobadilla; Neuer came on in place ofPhilipp Lahm butPaul Verhaegh hit the post for Augsburg, which eventually won 1–0.[57]
On 15 May 2018, it was announced that Reina would move toSerie A rivals Milan on aBosman transfer.[59] The deal was officialized on 2 July 2018 and he signed a three-year contract with theRossoneri.[60] He made his debut for the club in theEuropa League on 20 September, in a 1–0 away win overF91 Dudelange.[61][62] Although he served as back-up toGianluigi Donnarumma in Serie A during hisfirst season with the club,[63][64][65] he was the club's starting goalkeeper in the Europa League during his first season with the team,[63][66] making six appearances,[61] as Milan suffered a first–round elimination.[67] He made hisleague debut with the team on 2 April 2019, coming on as a substitute for Donnarumma in a 1–1 home draw againstUdinese, following the latter's injury in the opening ten minutes of play.[61]
In the first half of hissecond season with the club, he continued to serve as a back-up to Donnarumma, and only made once appearance for the team, which came in a 2–1 away win overGenoa inSerie A on 5 October 2019; during the match, Reina was at fault for the opening goal, as he had misjudgedLasse Schone's free kick, but he later saved a penalty against the same opponent, which he himself had conceded, in stoppage time.[68][69]
On 13 January 2020, Reina joined Premier League sideAston Villa on loan for the rest of the2019–20 season, after the team's usual first choice goalkeeperTom Heaton was ruled out through injury until the summer.[70][71]
On 27 August 2020,Lazio announced the signing of Reina on a permanent deal.[72][73] He made his club debut on 24 October, in a 2–1 home win overBologna in Serie A.[74]
On 8 July 2022, Reina returned toVillarreal on a season-long deal.[75] AfterGerónimo Rulli's departure forAjax in January 2023, Reina became the club's first-choice keeper for the rest of the2022–23 season.[76]
On 22 June 2023, Reina signed a contract renewal, staying at Villarreal foranother campaign.[77] During what would be his final season with the club, he served as backup to Villarreal academy graduateFilip Jörgensen in the league, playing mostly in theCopa del Rey and theUEFA Europa League, assisting his team in topping their group in the latter. On 5 October 2023, during Villarreal's 1–0 group stage victory overRennes, he became the Spanish player with the most appearances across UEFA club competitions, with 192, overtaking former Spain teammateIker Casillas, and the player with the second-most appearances of all time only behindCristiano Ronaldo.[78][79]
On 18 July 2024,Serie A clubComo announced the signing of Reina on a one-year deal. He was signed by his former international teammateCesc Fàbregas, five years his junior.[80]
On 20 May 2025, Reina announced that he would be retiring from professional football at the end of the season, aged 42.[81] Three days later, Reina played the 988th and final game of his career againstInter Milan, and was sent off in the first half for a professional foul.[82]
Reina made his debut on 17 August 2005, keeping a clean sheet in a 2–0 friendly win overUruguay atEl Molinón inGijón.[83] He was a member of the Spanish squad which reached the last 16 of the2006 World Cup, but did not play. AtUEFA Euro 2008, he played the final group match inSalzburg as Spain had already advanced, conceding a header by reigning championGreece'sAngelos Charisteas, although Spain came back to win 2–1.[84] He was an unused substitute for thefinal as Spain won 1–0 againstGermany to claim their first major honour for 44 years.[85]
In October 2008, he and Casillas together broke the national record for the longest time spent without conceding a goal after defeatingEstonia 3–0. The pair went unbeaten for 710 minutes since Reina conceded from Charisteas, longer than the legendaryAndoni Zubizarreta andFrancisco Buyo.Wesley Sonck ofBelgium ended their streak when he scored against Casillas in a World Cup qualifier later that month.[86] The following year, he was part of the Spanish squad which reached the semi-finals at the2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. His sole appearance was in the last group game inBloemfontein, keeping a clean sheet in a 2–0 win over hostsSouth Africa, a result which was a world record 15th consecutive international victory for Spain.[87]
He was named in thesquad for the2010 FIFA World Cup and was an unused substitute for thefinal as Spain were crowned World champions for the first time.[88] Reina was also called up for Spain forUEFA Euro 2012 and was on the bench for thefinal as Spain won 4–0 againstItaly.[89] Reina was also in Spain's squad for the2013 Confederations Cup, in which they reached thefinal. His sole appearance in the tournament came in the second group game against Oceanian championsTahiti, a 10–0 win at theMaracanã.[90] With Spain's elimination already confirmed, he was selected to start in Spain's final group match of the2014 World Cup keeping a clean sheet againstAustralia in a 3–0 win.[91]
In May 2018, Reina was named in Spain's final squad for the2018 FIFA World Cup. He was one of three members of the 2006 squad to be named in the 2018 squad, along withSergio Ramos andAndrés Iniesta.[92]
Reina was well known for his distribution, ball skills, technique, positioning, shot-stopping, leadership, and ability to save penalties. He also played as a "sweeper-keeper" on occasion throughout his career, due to his anticipation and speed when rushing off his line, as well as his ability to start plays or create chances from the back.[93][94][95][96][97][98][99] Fellow goalkeeperGianluigi Buffon named Reina as the best goalkeeper of his era with his feet.[100] He set a number of goalkeeping records for Liverpool and won thePremier League Golden Glove award in his first three seasons at the club.[101] He also received praise in the media for his longevity.[102]
Reina married his longtime girlfriend Yolanda Ruiz inCórdoba on 19 May 2006,[103] before joining up with the Spain national squad for the 2006 World Cup. The couple have five children. Reina was the former next door neighbour ofAtlético Madrid striker and Spanish international teammateFernando Torres.[104] When he was at Liverpool, Reina was neighbours with teammateLuis Suárez.[104]
Reina's fatherMiguel Reina was in goal for Atlético Madrid in the1974 European Cup final, which Atlético lost to Bayern Munich 4–0 in a replay after the first match finished 1–1.[105][106]
Although a steely and serious figure as goalkeeper, Reina is known for his exuberant, jester-like character off the pitch, often entertaining his teammates with jokes and songs,[107][108] and famously acting as a crowd-pleasingmaster of ceremonies at Spain's official victory celebrations following the 2008 European Championship,[109] the 2010 World Cup[110] and Euro 2012.[111]
In March 2020, he tested positive forCOVID-19;[112] later that month, in an interview with Spanish radio stationCOPE, he announced that he had made a "full recovery".[113]
In May 2020, Reina drew attention for supporting the anti-lockdown protests by national conservative political partyVox amidst theCOVID-19 pandemic in Spain.[116] In February 2021, he called progressive left-wing partyPodemos "the worst thing that has happened to Spain in the last 40 years".[117]
^"España vence 2–0 a Uruguay en amistoso" [Spain win 2–0 against Uruguay in a friendly].El Universo (in Spanish). Associated Press. 17 August 2005. Retrieved16 April 2015.
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