Malaga boss was interviewed.
Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina claims that he recommended prospective new Manchester City manager Manuel Pellegrini for the top job at Anfield back in 2010, The Express reports.
Pellegrini is set to take over at the Etihad following the sacking of Roberto Mancini this week though it is understood that he could have already been managing in the Premier League for three years now had Liverpool not dropped their interest in him.
Reina, who worked under Pellegrini during the pair’s time together at Villarreal, spoke to former Anfield managing director Christian Purslow about the possibility of bringing the Chilean on board as a successor to Rafa Benitez.
“Pellegrini had just lost his job at Real Madrid despite doing a really good job there and giving Barcelona a run for the La Liga title,” Reina said.
“He was available and we needed a manager. For me, it made perfect sense. I said so, telling Purslow that Pellegrini was the right man. It wasn’t just because I knew him. It was more about the style of football that he plays, getting teams to attack all the time.”
“Pellegrini has an attacking mentality and, when Purslow asked me about him, I said, ‘He’s a great manager and a great man in the dressing room’. He would never sit deep and just accept being put under pressure by opponents.”
“I know that the club spoke to Pellegrini a couple of times when they were looking for a new manager because he told me.”
“He called me and asked me what the mood was like in the dressing room, what the players were thinking and so on. I really hoped that he would get the job.”
Liverpool instead hired Roy Hodgson, who lasted just six months in the job before making way for Kenny Dalglish.