Klopp, Small Shinpads And Whether He Really Is Boring - Milner In His Own Words

Kelly Somers: Well, James... bully to spot you. I ever commencement these interviews by going backmost to nan very beginning. What would a young James Milner person made of what you person achieved - becoming nan Premier League all-time grounds quality holder?

James Milner: Yeah, I deliberation it's difficult to say. I suppose erstwhile you're that age, you're conscionable trying to get successful nan first team, first and foremost... get successful and astir location and enactment successful there, and then: 'What's nan adjacent thing?' It's ever 'what's nan adjacent achievement?' and 'never remainder connected your laurels' benignant of point really. So, yeah, I decidedly wouldn't beryllium reasoning excessively acold up - ne'er mind 20-odd years up and reasoning I'd still beryllium playing.

Kelly: Has it each been rather surreal because there's been truthful overmuch understandable hype astir it... you getting to nan record... erstwhile you were going to break it and nan truth that you have. Has it been rather weird?

Milner: For me, yeah, I've evidently been asked astir it a lot...

Kelly: Sorry to adhd to that database of group asking...

James: No, no... it is evidently a bully point successful position of group acknowledging that it's a large number. It's a batch of games, but I've conscionable been concentrating connected doing my occupation for Brighton really, and if I deed nan number past great. It wasn't thing that I'm like: 'Ah, I request to do this'. Everyone other asked tons of questions astir it and I deliberation nan communicative astir it past is like, that's nan only logic why I'm still playing, benignant of thing. If you said to me, aliases anyone who knows me, I conscionable want to lend to my squad and support pushing and helping nan nine here.

There's been immoderate really bully tributes and worldly for illustration that. Messages I've had obviously, which is... I don't want to downplay those and benignant of look for illustration it doesn't matter aliases thing because evidently it's truthful bully and immoderate of nan things group person said is fantastic... but, for me, individual worldly is thing possibly you look astatine erstwhile you've finished. For me, it's ever astir nan squad and conscionable doing your job, and hopefully I tin support doing that.

Kelly: What is your first shot representation then?

James: First shot representation would beryllium Leeds United winning nan First Division title [in 1991-92] and my dada picking maine up successful nan lounge and throwing maine information and saying: 'Enjoy it - it mightiness ne'er hap again successful your lifetime.' I would person been 5 astatine that point.

Kelly: Oh really? So, astatine that constituent you knew it was Leeds for life?

James: Yeah, that was nan first representation and past we started going to games and worldly aft that. I had a play summons and, yeah, it went from there.

Kelly: What astir kicking a ball? Were you kicking it then? Were you showing an interest?

James: Yeah, I mean maybe. I can't retrieve overmuch of it. I retrieve playing my first ever crippled for nan section team. It was Westbrook Juniors and we mislaid 16-2 and it was for illustration full-size pitch, full-size goals. You've sewage to bounce backmost from that score!

Kelly: I emotion that that's stuck pinch you - nan existent scoreline... precisely really galore you conceded.

James: Yeah, it has. I played a play location and past that squad stopped and past nan adjacent squad I played for was under-12s - I deliberation I was nine. And past I sewage scouted for Leeds.

Kelly: Which I ideate was nan dream, wasn't it... from your dada lifting you up?

James: Yeah, it was weird really because until that constituent arsenic a kid, I'd ne'er really thought astir being a footballer. Obviously, you emotion shot and I was playing football, but it ne'er crossed my mind that I could really do it myself. Yeah, for immoderate reason... I mean, you're 9 years aged and you're conscionable being a kid really. So, that was nan first clip and past going and putting nan Leeds training kit connected and having a proceedings and... evidently that was typical arsenic a Leeds instrumentality and that was nan dream then.

Kelly: Can you retrieve your first training convention astatine Leeds?

James: I retrieve my first training convention pinch nan reserves. David Batty was 1 broadside of maine and personification other was connected nan different and I was like, 'Oh my God'... like, it's Batts... legend! And getting complete that and past beautiful quick, I sewage sent complete to nan first team.

I don't cognize if personification sewage sent successful aliases if they needed a number and it was like: 'Go effort him pinch nan first team.' You don't person clip to deliberation astir it erstwhile you get involved. I conscionable retrieve nan velocity of it. It was like, 'wow, this is ridiculous'.

I remember, like, 'welcome to nan first team, kid' benignant of thing. You get tested, you get shouted astatine if you springiness nan shot away. I retrieve breaking my chemoreceptor really successful training. I sewage a beautiful beardown tackle from 1 of nan younger players successful nan first team. I was 16, he was possibly 20. I sewage kicked successful nan look connected nan level and collapsed my chemoreceptor and… that was 1 of nan early days.

You've sewage to toughen up and get connected pinch it, but you know, nan elder boys were great... [Danny] Mills and Gary Kelly and Mark Viduka. Alan Smith was, you know, nan 1 I looked up to. He was nan feline who'd travel done nan academy and scored pinch his first touch astatine Anfield and done what we each wanted to do.

Leeds' academy had been truthful awesome complete nan years, you know... Harry Kewell and [Jonathan] Woodgate, Paul Robinson, Alan Smith... nan database goes on.

Looking backmost now, astatine 16, having conscionable done my GCSEs and being pinch nan first team, it's like, 'phew' but astatine nan time, you're conscionable focused and trying to beryllium that you beryllium there.

Kelly: 2002 was rather a large twelvemonth for you wasn't it really, pinch everything? Was it first Premier League goal, Premier League appearance... and you were truthful young.

James: Yeah, I look backmost now and you deliberation really young you were. Three, 4 months before, I'd been doing my GCSEs and my mates were still successful sixth shape and coming to watch astatine Elland Road.

Kelly: Can you retrieve your first goal?

James: Yeah. I deliberation I'd travel connected early for Harry Kewell maybe. Jason Wilcox whipped it complete and I sewage it astatine nan beforehand post. And past we played 2 days later astatine Elland Road - 26th, 28th we played - and, you know, came connected early again - personification other sewage injured - and was fortunate capable to people again.