Gareth Barry interview: “You can’t beat winning trophies, that’s what football is about” | OneFootball

In a new interview, Former Manchester City midfielder Gareth Barry told City Xtra that winning trophies is a feeling one can’t beat as he reflected on his time in the English top-flight.

The 44-year-old also played for Aston Villa, where he made the majority of his appearances, Everton and West Bromwich Albion to accumulate a record 653 Premier League appearances throughout a career spanning 22 years. 

Barry made 175 appearances for Manchester City and played a key role in the club’s 2011-12 Premier League title triumph. Having started his career at Villa, where he stayed for 11 years, he moved to the Etihad Stadium in 2009 to work with Mark Hughes, who was City manager after Sheikh Mansour’s takeover of the club a year prior.

Since the overhaul by the Abu Dhabi United Group, the majority owner of the City Football Group (CFG), the Blues have found unprecedented success and established themselves as one of the the most successful clubs in England in the 21st century.

Barry was only around for two of those major trophies, the aforementioned top-flight triumph and the 2011 FA Cup, amidst a time where he was considered a key part in City’s midfield alongside Nigel de Jong, Yaya Toure and David Silva.

In a recent interview with OLBG on behalf of City Xtra, Barry reflected on holding the record for the most number of appearances in the English top-flight.

“Yeah, I think I’ve always been proud of my debuts when I made my debut in 1998 for Villa,” the Englishman said. “That’s the dream – to represent a club in the Premier League. And when I signed for Aston Villa, I couldn’t wait to try and get in the first-team and still the most nervous I’ve ever been making my debut. And that was a proud moment.

“Going on then to captain Aston Villa, a team I spent a lot of time with, that was a proud moment to wear the armband for a few years. And then, I just think (that) going on to Man City, you can’t beat winning trophies. That is what football is about. So having achieved that to win the FA Cup and the Premier League, was coming to the end of my twenties really.

“So I’m looking, thinking, ‘Am I ever going to win a trophy?’. So there’s a bit of relief and there were special moments. And then to be involved in the (Sergio) Aguero game (against Queens Park Rangers), to win the title, that will go down in history itself. So all my debuts at my clubs were special moments. I enjoy playing for all my clubs, so they’re there as well.”

Barry’s towering number of appearances in the Premier League creates an almost-unassailable spectacle in contrast to most players currently playing in the English top-flight, except former Manchester City star James Milner, who trails by just six games. 

It is likely the Brighton midfielder, who also represented Liverpool for eight years, will catch up and overtake Barry – given he has already featured 11 times undr Fabian Hurzeler this season while fighting a recent muscle injury. 

And with no sign of a successful career stopping, despite the fact his minutes have decreased since his Champions League-winning days at Liverpool, Milner is still in apt shape at 39 and is undoubtedly after the crown. For reference, the closest competitor who still plays in the division is Ipswich Town’s Ashley Young, who has made 485 Premier League appearances.