James Milner: From £70-a-week YTS player to the brink of a Premier League appearance record

“People joke that I only did it because he didn’t do his homework,” says former Premier League referee Jon Moss of the time he sent off James Milner.

Twenty-four years after making his debut, Milner, 40, will equal the record for most Premier League appearances if he features for Brighton against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

A remarkable career spanning more than two decades, six top-flight clubs, 652 Premier League appearances, 61 England caps, three Premier League titles, two FA Cups and one Champions League victory, also provided some unexpected moments.

Like the time of Milner – known as “Milly”, external By those close to him – He was sacked by Moss, his former teacher at Westbrook Lane Primary School in Horsforth, Leeds, while playing for Liverpool against Crystal Palace in 2019.

“He said I couldn’t wait to get my card out,” Moss laughs about his former student being fired after changing careers.

“People say I’m the only teacher who sent off one of his students in a Premier League match. We can laugh about that now.”

Milner is set to level level with Gareth Barry, who has made 653 appearances, at the top of the list of all-time Premier League appearances some 8,491 days after making his debut for Leeds United, his hometown club, shortly after leaving school in 2002.

Brighton coach Fabian Horzler said: “I think this will be something special for him but above that he is focused on the ambitions of the club as well. He wants to always be successful as he has been all his life.”

“He drives a winning mentality and I think it is very important to have this type of player in the team.

“They know how to win, they know what it takes to win, how you need to prepare for the game, how to react in bad phases like the bad run we have at the moment.”

Alan Shearer, who played with Milner at Newcastle, described him as a role model and a “manager’s dream”.

“You’ll do well if he’s in your team because you know exactly what you’re getting,” adds Shearer, the former England captain.

This is the story of a young boy from Leeds who developed to set the standard for hard work, professionalism and longevity – and the respect of fans around the world.