Apart from the obvious reluctance from the Liverpool manager to let arguably his most consistent player, Pepe Reina leave - especially for one of Liverpool's biggest rivals in Manchester United, the "Red Devils" simply wouldn't be willing to involve themselves in a big transfer tussle involving a large sum of money that they just don't have.Hodgson said
“If [Sir Alex] Ferguson is looking around at the end of the season and he has got lots of money to replace van der Sar, he might very well want Pepe Reina because he is the best around.
“But we do not want to sell him. I would like to think that we are going to become a successful club once again and Pepe is crucial to that.
“We have heard nothing from Manchester United and, more to the point, we don’t want to hear anything from Manchester United."Hodgson obviously doesn't want to let his star player go - and with good reason. He is "crucial" for Liverpool's success and it was only six months ago he signed a six year contract to stay at the club. Reina knows how much Hodgson and Liverpool value him, and how much they want him to stay. Unless there is a "secret get out clause" in his contract, (which I very much doubt that there is - or if there is I very much doubt that Reina would take advantage of it) only then would Liverpool have to let the player go.
I believe that Manchester United would be very unwilling to create a big story involving the chase for Reina, nor do I believe that Reina wants to leave Liverpool. I know that Liverpool don't want to let him go, and I know that Manchester United have limited funds to buy big players and pay big wages to them, especially considering the mass increase in their current players wages.
All points considered, Reina doesn't seem likely to join Manchester United. The Dutchman Maarten Steklenburg seems a far more likely choice for United - as I have reported on before, Here http://bit.ly/chVKBD.
