Since the announcement that club stalwart and Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard would be leaving the Reds was made back in January, the confirmation of Jordan Henderson as new club captain had been coming for some time.
However, due to the reasonable number of candidates seemingly well suited to become the club’s new vice skipper, the decision was very much up in the air for a short period of time and nobody could predict it.
Kolo Toure was never the answer due to his lack of time on the pitch, no matter what his influence off the field may be like, and whilst Martin Skrtel and Mamadou Sakho may have turned out to have been inspired choices further down the line, I really do believe James Milner was the correct one.
Milner is a terrific capture for the club, and I for one still cannot believe that it was so easy to secure his services. For Manchester City to let him run down his contract like that is unforgivable, in my opinion. A player that is so hard-working and yet very much a technically gifted midfielder too.
Whether the player insisted that he wouldn’t be signing an extension at the club or not, you would think that City would still attempt to make some money out of a very good Premier League player.
For him to then just waltz into a ‘rival’ side’s starting XI on a free seems ludicrous. But hey, let’s not complain.
It’s been a funny start to the season for the Reds and James Milner has been at the heart of it. A terrific opening day win at Stoke, a victory at home to Bournemouth, an impressive draw away at Arsenal where the England international captained the club in the absence of Jordan Henderson, before being embarrassed at home by West Ham.
He has already shown the qualities that we were all expecting to see and he appears to be enjoying the more central role that he has been craving for years. We have a player with two Premier League medals and such vast experience in how to win games in an extremely fast, competitive league, through playing well or not. That is going to prove to be very important for the Reds throughout the season.
Milner has already made it very clear what his expectations are with Liverpool. He is a winner.
After the Stoke game, his comments impressed me. He’s the kind of player a club dreams of having.
He is quoted in a Daily Mail article as saying:
“It is always about the results. If we played rubbish every game of the season and won every one of them then everybody would be happy with that.”
Ultimately it is about getting that win whether it is a game where we can move the ball about or whether it is a game where it is a battle and we have to grind it out.
“You have to assess the situation and be able to adapt to those games and play in all these different formations and against different sides.”
That’s brilliant. A player who knows what he has to try and do for the team to win. That’s why he’s the man.
Don’t get me wrong, that not what we want to see week in, week out. Course not. We want solid defending, intricate, fast link-up play and lots of goals from all over the pitch. And we have the players in the squad capable of delivering that for us.
But it’s good to have a bit of both. There will be games where the goals keep on coming and there will be times where it’s just not happening. That is where James Milner is right; the team may need to adjust slightly during a Premier League encounter and do what they need to do to pick up three points. That’s how winning is done (Arnold voice).
You get the feeling that he gains the respect from the players too. Not necessarily because he’s older than some. It’s because he’s done it all before, and all the players will want to learn from someone like that. They all want the same thing.
It will be interesting to see him in the next couple of months, and especially at Old Trafford this weekend, the perfect venue to bounce back. I don’t expect goals from Milner this season, nor too much fancy footwork or assists. I just know he’ll be there, every week, working hard and doing all he can to help Liverpool win games.
