Pennant recalls Turkish delight

If Liverpool fans have any doubts about new signing Jermaine Pennant’s commitment to Anfield, they need only listen to his memories of the club’s Champions League triumph in Istanbul to be convinced.

Pennant completed a £6.7m (€5.3m) move from Birmingham last night when he signed a four-year deal to finally solve boss Rafael Benitez’s year-long search for a right-sided midfielder.

It has become a standing joke at Anfield that every new signing, be they from the other side of the world or the opposite side of the Mersey, always claims to have been a boyhood fan of the club.

Pennant looks the real McCoy on that front and he recalls a night of delirium when he was on holiday in Mauritius.

He told LiverpoolFC.TV: “I was away in Mauritius with my girlfriend when the Champions League final was on and I watched it along with a load of other Liverpool fans on the big screen in my hotel.

“When we went 3-0 down I just went back to my room feeling really disappointed. A bit later I put the match on again and saw it was 3-3. I couldn’t believe it and started jumping all over the bed.”