Liverpool proven right after beating Arsenal to free transfer who turned down Man City

0
Liverpool Midfielder James Milner faces widespread media criticism amid a string of poor performances.

Source: The Liverpool Offside

In a surprising move, James Milner declined a contract extension from Manchester City to join Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers.

While Arsenal also expressed interest, Milner was enticed by the prospect of a more central midfield role promised by Rodgers.

However, fate had a different plan as Jurgen Klopp took charge at Liverpool shortly after Milner’s arrival. The Gunners pursued Milner vigorously after he rejected a lucrative deal from City, but it was Liverpool that captured his attention.

Upon joining Liverpool in 2015, Milner became the vice-captain and donned the prestigious number seven shirt. Despite his previous successes at City, including two Premier League titles and domestic cups, Milner’s ambition extended to winning the ultimate prize—the Champions League.

In 2019, four years after his arrival, Milner played a pivotal role in Klopp’s squad lifting the trophy in Madrid, fulfilling his dream.

Throughout his time at Liverpool, Milner achieved every major honor before departing when his contract expired, marking the end of a remarkable era for the club. He is leaving as he wanted while his arrival,

“That’s a big thing for me coming to the later stages of my career – I’m not going to say the end of my career because I still feel I have plenty of football left in me! – I want to play as much football as I can.

When I’m sat at 45 and retired, I want to look back and see what I’ve done and that I’ve played games, rather than having come to the end of my career and tailed off.

Liverpool is a great fit for me as a club. It’s a huge club and there is a lot of pressure every time you step out onto that field. I’ve played in front of the Anfield crowd and it’ll be nice to be on the other side of the fans now.

The atmosphere they create is fantastic and probably some of the best atmospheres I’ve played in in England, so to have them supporting me is definitely going to be an amazing feeling.”

During his final appearance for Liverpool, Milner made his 332nd appearance in a season-ending draw against Southampton. Reflecting on his time at the club, he expressed immense pride in contributing to the club’s success and creating their own history.

As Milner bid farewell to Liverpool, he cherished,

“I’ve loved every minute here. Unbelievable club, the size of the club, the history before you come in, and we’ve managed to create our own history.

Travelling around the world, seeing the support we have, the special nights we’ve had here, the European nights, the unbelievable games, obviously Dortmund and Barça always stand out but other periods in games.

Those memories will stay with you forever. I’m Leeds through and through and always have been and always will be – but I never probably thought that another club would get into me as much as Liverpool has.

That says everything about the place and the fans and the history and what we’ve created here, but also the group of people.

I’ve been lucky enough to share that dressing room and the people at the training ground and the people that have been here so long – that’s what football clubs are about.”

Milner’s departure signifies the end of an era, but his contributions will forever be remembered as part of Liverpool’s illustrious history.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *