In his new autobiography, Pepe Reina has lifted the lid on his time at Liverpool. But amid revelations of dressing room bust-ups, broken-down transfers and disillusionment at the ownership of Hicks and Gillett, it is important not to lose sight of the facts. Reina is under contract with Liverpool until 2016, he loves the club, and he is absolutely crucial to its success.

When Rafael Benitez brought Reina to Liverpool from Spanish side Villarreal for £6m in 2005, he hailed him as "the best goalkeeper in Spain". Real Madrid's Iker Casillas may dispute that claim, but since his arrival at Anfield, there is no doubt that Reina has developed into one of the world's best.

Reina is from Madrid, but like so many top Spanish players, he is a product of Barcelona's famed La Masia youth academy. His father, Miguel, also a goalkeeper, played for Barcelona and Atletico Madrid during the 60s and 70s. A young Pepe Reina followed his father's footsteps when he made his La Liga debut for Barca during the 2000-2001 season, but moved to Villarreal the following year in search of first team football. It wasn't long before he caught Benitez's eye.

A Liverpool legend in the making, Reina, now 29, proved an instant success at Anfield, deposing Jerzy Dudek as first choice in a record-breaking debut season. Between October and December of 2005, Reina broke Liverpool's club record with an incredible 11 consecutive clean-sheets. In his first season at Anfield, he kept a total of 20 Premier League clean sheets, and was awarded the Golden Glove. Reina was instrumental in Liverpool's 2006 FA Cup triumph too, living up to his reputation as a penalty-saving specialist with three saves from four West Ham penalties in the shoot-out.

Indeed, Reina had already proved he was no slouch when it came to saving penalties. In his final season at Villarreal, he had saved seven out of nine, and he has continued to perform penalty heroics for Liverpool since the 2006 FA Cup final, notably in the 2007 Champions League semi-final against Chelsea, when he capped an excellent performance over two legs with two penalty saves in the shoot-out.

Liverpool failed to repeat their Istanbul heroics that year as AC Milan exacted a 2-1 revenge in the final, but Reina's individual performance throughout the season drew the plaudits. With 19 Premier League clean sheets, he won the Golden Glove for the second consecutive year, and on 2^nd February 2008, in his 92^nd league appearance for the Reds, he became the quickest goalkeeper in their history to reach a half century of shut-outs.

Reina has not missed Premier League match since the final game of the 2006/07 season against Charlton, meaning Saturday's game against Manchester United will be his 160^th consecutive league appearance. It is a remarkable record, and furthermore, he has kept a total of 109 clean sheets in his 226 Premier League appearances to date. Overall, since joining Liverpool he has kept 146 clean sheets in 317 games.

At international level, Pepe Reina was part of Spain's Euro 2008 and World Cup 2010-winning squads. He has made 22 appearances for La Roja since making his debut in a friendly against Uruguay in 2005, but he is unfortunate that his career has coincided with that of Casillas, Spain's current captain. While he may be second choice for his country, Reina still comes comfortably inside the world's top five goalkeepers.

Reina is as important to Kenny Dalglish's Liverpool as fellow Kop heroes Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher, and in the absence of those two, it has been the Spaniard who has taken the captain's armband.

In September, Reina announced that he was happy to stay at Liverpool for another five or six years. If he can uphold the high standards he has set himself since 2005, that could be the best news Liverpool fans hear all year.

---

View Icons full range of signed Pepe Reina products here.

Players like Jamie Carragher are fast becoming a throwback. Liverpool's defensive rock and vice-captain has only ever played for one club, and chances are that's how it will stay. In an era where players chase lucrative wage hikes and transfers, our Icons Legend of the Week #6 stands out for his unwavering loyalty.

Like fellow Kop legends Robbie Fowler and Ian Rush, Carragher was a boyhood Everton fan. After signing up with Liverpool, however, it soon became clear where his true allegiances lay. Liverpool is his club, and he is their legend.

The boy from Bootle signed a professional contract with Liverpool in October 1996, and three months later former manager Roy Evans handed him his debut in a League Cup semi-final against Middlesbrough. Now 33 years old and in his 16th season on Merseyside, Carragher boasts a total of 669 appearances for the club, making him their second longest-serving player after Ian Callaghan.

Fittingly, Carragher's first Liverpool goal came in front of the Kop. Since that strike - a header in a 3-0 over Aston Villa in early 1997 - he has added only four more. But it's at the other end of the pitch where Carragher excels. A brave and astute defender, Carragher first cemented his place in the first team as full-back during the 1997/98 season. It wasn't until the arrival of Rafael Benitez in 2004 that Carragher was moved to centre-back, where he's been a commanding presence and a driving force ever since.

Carragher celebrated his first senior trophies at the end of the 2000/2001 season. Playing at left-back, Carragher was a regular starter in the side that won the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup.

It was in the 2004/2005 season, however, that he truly blossomed. Carragher made 56 appearances alongside Sami Hyypia at the heart of Liverpool's defence during that campaign. The formidable partnership he formed with the Finn was integral to Liverpool's successful Champions League campaign, which culminated in that famous comeback against AC Milan in Istanbul. In extra-time, suffering from cramp and with the scores level at 3-3, Carragher pulled off some typically heroic last ditch blocking to deny the Italians. His bravery and never-say-die attitude pulled Liverpool through to win the penalty shoot-out. He was voted the Reds' player of the year.

Carragher's international career never reached the same heights. He featured 27 times for the under-21 side before making his debut with the seniors on 28 April 1999 against Hungary. Despite an impressive total of 38 caps, Carragher never managed to consistently hold down a starting place, and in 2007 he retired from international football citing a lack of playing time. In 2010 Carragher was persuaded to come out of retirement by Fabio Capello for the World Cup in South Africa, but England endured a disastrous campaign, and Carragher subsequently reaffirmed his desire to devote his focus to Liverpool.

To the Anfield faithful, Carragher's international career is of little concern. With Kenny Dalglish back at the helm, there is a feeling on Merseyside that this could be Liverpool's year. The legend in the dugout will be looking to his counterpart on the pitch to keep things steady at the back. If there's one man who can make that happen, it's Jamie Carragher.