Its over ten years since James Milner left Elland Road, but the England international should feel pleased with the career he has carved out since. He is just six games shy of 500 club appearances - no mean feat for a player who has not yet turned 29 - and his trophy haul reads two league titles, an FA Cup, a League Cup and a Community Shield. He was voted the PFA Young Player of the Year while at Aston Villa during the 09/10 season, and was included in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year during the same campaign. He has also represented his country on over 50 occasions, and has appeared at the 2010 World Cup and Euro 2012. It was at Leeds United where it all began for the dynamic midfielder, having been snapped up at the age of ten years old in 1996. Within six years, he would have made his first-team debut for the club, becoming the second youngest player to ever feature in the Premier League. On Boxing Day, the 16 year old became the youngest player to score in the Premier League - a record that has since been broken by James Vaughan. Due to their perilous financial situation and lack of bodies, the talented Milner played 54 times for the Leeds United first-team before his 19th birthday. His impressive displays werent enough to quell the inevitable doom of relegation and a £3.6 million move to Newcastle United was swiftly tied up. For Milner, it may be nearly ten years since he left Elland Road, but he still refers to the club he grew up supporting as us.
I speak to my mum and dad about the club, and my uncle and all my mates are big Leeds fans as well. Theyre on the up, if you like. Its a massive club and I believe, along with many others, that they should be back in the Premier League. Hopefully its a time of stability for us. Im just disappointed that I didnt get to play for Leeds a bit longer. Maybe if I had been born a few years earlier, I might have got involved in the Champions League runs. But I enjoyed every minute and its the first result I look for every Saturday. - James Milner, February 2013.
Perhaps a romantic swansong back at Elland Road when he tires of collecting medals? So that's a wrap - what do you think? As always, feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions in the comment section below.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
