Tuesday, June 04, 2013

Liverpool Target Simon Mignolet

Liverpool want Simon Mignolet to replace Pepe Reina, should their Spanish goalkeeper depart this summer, and they face further uncertainty in attack with Daniel Sturridge likely to miss the start of next season with an ankle injury.

Reina had been expected to join Barcelona for about £10m until Víctor Valdés reconsidered his intention to leave the Spanish champions with 12 months remaining on his contract. Valdés's U-turn on Friday has thrown the Liverpool goalkeeper's immediate future into doubt, though not killed the deal entirely or the prospect of the 30-year-old moving elsewhere, and Brendan Rodgers is continuing with his search to sign a replacement before the new campaign.

Asmir Begovic of Stoke City has long been linked with a move to Anfield and is under consideration, as is Alex McCarthy at Reading, but it is Sunderland's leading keeper, Mignolet, whom Liverpool have identified as their first choice should Reina leave. The 25-year-old enjoyed an outstanding season at the Stadium of Light and was instrumental in keeping a struggling Sunderland team in the Premier League.

Sunderland would naturally fight to retain the Belgium international, who has swept the club's and supporters' player of the year awards, but Liverpool are hopeful he would be tempted by a move to Merseyside and that he would cost less than the £15m Stoke City want for Begovic.

Liverpool had expected a decision on Reina's future by the end of May and it was only the lure of a return to Barcelona that had swayed him towards a move. Reina is on a lucrative contract at Anfield, believed to be worth more than £100,000 a week, and the uncertainty over his next step is just one issue complicating Rodgers' transfer strategy for the summer.

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