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Liverpool ace makes Gunners admission
Liverpool, 12:23, October 9, 2011
Pepe Reina has blasted ex-owners Tom Hicks and George Gillett and accused them of using as "a bargaining chip" to sell Liverpool.
Reina revealed that he was considering his future at Anfield after Arsenal made a £20 million bid for him shortly after the 2010 World Cup, only to be refused the chance to speak to the Gunners because he was needed as "a bargaining chip" in the sale of the club.
The 29-year-old Spain international was one of the most outspoken critics of the American duo during their controversial spell on Merseyside and he admitted in his autobiography: "I went from elation one minute to depression the next as the realisation dawned that Liverpool were going nowhere fast.
"When I signed my contract in April 2010 I hoped that better times were just around the corner, a feeling that was fuelled by the promises of improvement from people at the club.
"It didn't take me long to feel that their promises were hollow. I felt betrayed. Our owners were at war with each other, the club's debts were spiralling out of control and a change in manager had failed to dispel the feeling that we were on the road to nowhere.
"Arsenal had made their determination to sign me clear by offering £20 million, a phenomenal amount for a goalkeeper. Part of me felt that I was well within my rights to consider my future even if I did so with a heavy heart.
"When Liverpool received the bid, they rejected it. This was not because I had been told that I was too good a keeper to leave. The reason I was given was quite different - and it left me feeling down. I was told that my continued presence was crucial to the sale of the club. I was simply a bargaining chip in the sales process.
"I still don't know what to think of [managing director Christian] Purslow because I understand he was there to look for new owners and to try to sell the club but ultimately he was making big football decisions that he was not qualified to make."
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