Premier League record-breaker James Milner retires from football | OneFootball

All-time record Premier League appearance-maker has hung up his boots

Premier League record-breaker James Milner has announced his retirement from professional football, aged 40.

Milner’s career began in 2002, aged just 16 years old when he made his debut for Leeds, and went on to accumulate a record 658 Premier League appearances – surpassing previous holder Gareth Barry in February.

Across his more than two-decade career, Milner won three Premier League titles, two FA Cups and one Champions League split over his time with both Manchester City and Liverpool. He also played for Newcastle, Aston Villa, Swindon Town and, most recently, Brighton.

He also played 61 times for England representing the nation at two World Cups and two European Championships, received the PFA Young Player of the Year award in 2009-10 and feature in the Professional Footballers’ Association’s Team of the Year in the same season.

Milner closed out his career with Brighton, where his contract will expire at the end of June. Despite interest from the manager, Fabian Hurzeler, for the Englishman to stay on, the curtain will finally be drawn on a glittering career.

“After 24 seasons in the Premier League, it feels like the right time to bring an end to my playing career,” Milner said on Instagram. “From making my debut for Leeds United, who I supported growing up, at the age of 16 and becoming the Premier League’s youngest scorer, I could never have dreamed of the journey I’ve been on, right through to not being able to lift my foot last year and then coming back to be part of Brighton qualifying for Europe for the second time in their history at the age of 40.”

At 16 years and 309 days old, Milner became the second youngest player to feature in the Premier League at the time of his debut and is still the third- youngest scorer, now behind Max Dowman and James Vaughan.

It then took him a decade to claim his first Premier League title with Man City in 2011-12, before adding another two years later. He completed the hat-trick with Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp in 2019-20, the season after collecting his first and only Champions League winners’ medal.

“I leave the game with immense pride, gratitude and memories that will stay with me for the rest of my life,” Milner concluded on Instagram. “Football has given me far more than I could ever have imagined, and I will always be thankful for the opportunities it provided. “Thank you to everyone who has been part of the journey.”