Former Liverpool Player James Milner Retires | OneFootball

Is it right to refer to someone who has played for as many clubs as James Milner has as a Liverpool legend? That is the issue that I wrestled with when writing the title of this piece. The midfielder was a brilliant addition to the team in 2015, having signed from Manchester City on a free transfer.

In fact, you could even argue that the Reds might not have achieved what they went on to achieve without his experience and drive at the club. It is a real sign of the man that supporters of Leeds United, Aston Villa and City will all be saying nice things about ‘Milly’ on the day that he has chosen to retire from professional football, not just us Reds.

An Incredible Career

Will bcfc, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Before I touch on his time with Liverpool specifically, it is worth outlining just what an impressive career James Milner had during his time as a professional footballer.

He broke through the ranks at Leeds United, becoming the second-youngest player ever to play in the Premier League, going on to make just shy of 50 league appearances for them before joining Newcastle United.

He established himself under Bobby Robson, but struggled to keep his role when Graeme Souness took over as manager. That resulted in him being sent on loan to Aston Villa, for whom he would sign permanently after briefly returning to St James’ Park.

Having entered a written transfer request to the Magpies, Milner ended up signing for Aston Villa for £12 million and did enough to earn a call-up to the England squad under Fabio Capello. It was whilst at Villa Park that he moved into the centre of midfield, impressing Manchester City so much that they offered £20 million for his signature, which was rejected.

wonker, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

In the end, he moved there for around £26 million and won two Premier League titles and one each of the FA Cup and League Cup with the Cityzens, albeit during the sportswashing era, to add to the Intertoto Cup he’d won with Newcastle back in 2006.

Milner the Red

It was the fourth of June 2015 when James Milner agreed to join Liverpool on a free transfer. At the start of the season, he was made vice-captain to Jordan Henderson, wearing the captain’s armband for the first time in just his third appearance for the Reds. Both on and off the field, Milner earned a reputation as being the standard setter, constantly winning the bleep test in pre-season as he also set numerous records.

He had become, for example, the player to score in the most matches without losing when his goal against his former club, Man City, resulted in a 1-1 draw and his 47th game of scoring and either winning or drawing.

He will likely be remembered for being absolutely deadly from the spot, as well as his sheer desire to ensure that the result got over the line. His performance against Barcelona in that Champions League match will go down as one of the finest that anyone in Red has produced over the years.

In the May of 2023, Liverpool confirmed that he would depart the club at the end of the campaign, having won the Premier League, FA Cup, Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, FIFA Club World Cup and League Cup whilst at Anfield. He then moved to Brighton & Hove Albion and became the player with the most Premier League appearances ever.

Returning as a Coach?

As soon as Milner’s retirement was announced, Liverpool supporters immediately took to social media in order to suggest that the next permanent manager could do a lot worse than to bring him on board at Anfield as a member of their coaching staff.

The overwhelming feeling from many is that there hasn’t been anyone behind the scenes setting the expectation levels over the past season, even if that is harsh on Arne Slot and his coaching team. Milner has previously completed a number of coaching badges and has also expressed a keen interest in management in the past, even if that isn’t on his immediate post-retirement schedule.

Instead, he is reportedly planning to take advice given to him by his former manager Jürgen Klopp, who recommended that he should take a break after hanging up his boots. If anyone were to arrive at Anfield with the ability to make it clear to players what is expected from them, it is surely James Milner.

Having learned Spanish after joining Manchester City so as to be able to bond with his teammates there, meaning that he might well choose to head abroad if he does become a coach. Liverpool fans may well be hoping that he enjoyed his time at Anfield enough to head back here at some point in the not-too-distant future, however.