Pepe Reina believes Piotr Zielinski is a player who could play for Real Madrid or Barcelona and is “higher than Serie A”.
In an interview with El Larguero, as quoted by Tribal Football, Pepe Reina has reserved special words of praise for former Napoli teammate Piotr Zielinski. The veteran Spanish goalkeeper has suggested that the Polish international could play for Real Madrid or Barcelona.
Piotr Zielinski joined Napoli from Udinese in the summer of 2016 and has since become a key figure for the Serie A outfit. One of the fittest players in the first-team setup at San Paolo, the 26-year-old has been a regular face for the Partenopei over the past half-a-decade and was even linked with a move to Liverpool a number of times in this period.
Zielinski, who is closing in on 200 appearances for Napoli, has started 2020/21 a tad bit slowly, after missing a few games after testing positive for the coronavirus. Nevertheless, he has gone on to amass 5 appearances across all competitions, with a goal and an assist to show for his efforts. Now, though, the former Liverpool target has been tipped to join Barcelona or Real Madrid.
Speaking on Spanish radio program El Larguero on Cadena SER, former Liverpool goalkeeper Pepe Reina has hyped up Zielinski, saying, “Is there a player who has surprised me for the better? There is a player who I fell in love with from the first time I saw him – the Napoli midfielder Zielinski. He’s a Real Madrid or Barcelona player. He is out of the ordinary. He is higher than Serie A.”
Zielinski could indeed be a viable target for Real Madrid, who are reportedly set to part ways with Isco while Luka Modric is in the twilight of his career. Hence, the Merengues could perhaps, soon be entering the market for a creative midfielder, and Zielinski might be someone worth looking at for Real Madrid.
As far as Barcelona are concerned, it is difficult to see how they would be able to fit Zielinski in, with former Liverpool superstar Philippe Coutinho reclaiming his place in the first-team setup. Meanwhile, Pedri and Antoine Griezmann are options to reprise the no. 10 role as well, while Memphis Depay is the priority as far as attack is concerned.
Reina’s comments do make for interesting reading, with Zielinski being quite impressive over the course of his time at Napoli. It will be interesting to see if the former Liverpool goalkeeper’s opinion on the 26-year-old does actually end up being correct, with the player being tipped for a move to Real Madrid or Barcelona.
