The former City midfielder doesn’t want any regrets at the end of his career
Following on from the Europa League round of 32 second leg win against Augsburg last night, Liverpool will take on Manchester City at Wembley on Sunday in the Capital One Cup final, and James Milner is determined to end his career with no regrets.
The 29 year old made the somewhat surprising move to Anfield on a free transfer in the summer, after choosing to leave the super-rich Manchester club and was immediately given the role of vice captain.
The England star has had a slightly mixed first season at the club, but has shown signs of his quality in recent weeks and will no doubt have a major role to play as the season progresses to what will, hopefully, be a successful conclusion.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Milner said: “The moments when you win a trophy or achieve something — they are few and far between. You have to enjoy them when they come. You don’t want any regrets. Hopefully I have still got a few years left.
“You are a long time retired. I don’t want to sit there when that happens and think, ‘Oh, I wish I had done that better’. I just think everything I can do, that is always the way that I have been. I don’t want to have any regrets.
“It is so difficult at this level. I have seen so many top players with potential come through and not quite make it because the mentality wasn’t right. I’ve seen others get through because they had the mentality, even if they didn’t have the ability.”
For Milner, you could argue that he sits somewhere between the two, having both a strong mentality and a fair bit of ability, and if he can find his feet on a consistent basis at the club, he can no doubt enjoy a lot more success in the coming years.
On his success at the Etihad, and subsequent move to Liverpool, Milner said: “I was fortunate enough to win everything at City. They hadn’t won anything for such a long time. I wanted to go there and help them achieve success and we managed to do that.
“Liverpool has had such an amazing history but I would like to be a part of winning trophies here. I can see that happening.”
