Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has spoken of his admiration for Tottenham goalkeeper Brad Friedel ahead of their meeting at Anfield this evening, The Daily Mirror reports. The Reds take on Spurs looking to keep pressure on the top four and move above sixth placed Arsenal with a win.
Reina is expected to start and make his 176th consecutive league appearance for Liverpool, which dwarfs in insignificance to Friedel’s record. The 40 year old Friedel will make his 290th consecutive appearance and last missed a game when former club Blackburn played Birmingham in May 2004. Reina has spoken of how he would love to beat Friedel’s record one day and at 29, he has every chance of achieving such a feat.
The Liverpool keeper said: ‘I would love to beat Brad’s record one day, but I know it’s going to be very difficult.’ Reina is hopeful success will come soon for Liverpool, who face Championship side Cardiff City in the Carling Cup final on the 26th February. However, the Spanish international is concentrated on the game with Tottenham first and insists his teammates need to stop the threats of Gareth Bale and Luka Modric if they want to win.
Reina said: ‘Tottenham are third at the moment, which means it won’t be easy, but we are playing at Anfield and we have the ability to win on Monday. Tottenham base their play on Bale and Modric, and it’s working well for them. So we will have to stop them. It will be a very sacrificial match for us with the hard work we will need to put in but if we want to move up the table then we simply have to win it.’
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