James Milner

[Shaelumstash]

This is the kind of ridiculous hyperbolic nonsense I'm talking about. Chelsea would love him? Are you on drugs?!

Liverpool and Everton?! Have you seen the way they play? Technical, intricate, short sharp passing game. Not exactly suited to the way Milner plays.

You're suggesting he's better than Fernandinho. Now the guy saying he's better than Muller you can put down to not seeing much of Muller, so it might be an honest mistake. But you've probably seen lots of Fernandinho and Milner so to think Milner is as good or better just shows a complete lack of understanding of football at the elite level.

At that level, reading the game, quick decision making and immaculate technique are worth a whole lot more than running around a lot aimlessly and "dying for the shirt".

I like Milner as a squad man, but don't compare him with Muller and Fernandinho. They are two of the best players in Europe. Milner is back up to the first team for a top 6 side, or a starter in a mid table team.

Better comparisons for him are Darren Fletcher, Leon Osman, Chris Brunt, Steven Nzonzi. That's Milner's level. I like him as a character, he always tries his best but the fact people mention him in the same breath as some of the best midfielders in Europe just proves my point that among City fans he's the most overrated player since the takeover.

I think it is criminal that Milner hasn't been played more in central midfield. He has all of the attributes to be a quality centre mid and showed this at Villa.

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

 

[ake_stan]

Would others start him against the rags? Seems to love the big occasion.
Doubt it he'd start and thats why he played against Fulham

 

[Didsbury Dave]

Would others start him against the rags? Seems to love the big occasion.
Doubt it he'd start and thats why he played against Fulham

He won't start against United. The substitutions of Nasri and Silva proved that. And quite rightly so.

 

[bluemc1]

Would others start him against the rags? Seems to love the big occasion.
Doubt it he'd start and thats why he played against Fulham

He won't start against United. The substitutions of Nasri and Silva proved that. And quite rightly so.

i dont think those subs proved that as if he did start v United it would be the same midfield as v Fulham, it will be Navas or Milner on the right and I'm not sure who id go for, a lot saying Liverpool caused them hell with pace so we should go for Navas so fair enough but i wouldn't be bothered if it was Milner,

 

[dctid]

Dont know what matches people have been watching but when i have seen him play there always work rate and attitude, prepared to have a run at his man and he seems to lift the tempo of the team

He is almost a perfect PL player

For me whilst he never ever reaches the dizzy heights of say a Silva he is always always consistent

 

[Manchester1894]

Love the all new James "stepover" Milner.. Haha

 

[greasedupdeafguy]

Would others start him against the rags? Seems to love the big occasion.
Doubt it he'd start and thats why he played against Fulham

He won't start against United. The substitutions of Nasri and Silva proved that. And quite rightly so.

Dont think he will start but he always raises his game in these type of matches, Arsenal away last season, our past two visits to OT and Bayern away this season for example.

 

[bluemc1]

Dont know what matches people have been watching but when i have seen him play there always work rate and attitude, prepared to have a run at his man and he seems to lift the tempo of the team

He is almost a perfect PL player

For me whilst he never ever reaches the dizzy heights of say a Silva he is always always consistent

Agree 100% with you mate, when i see some of the passes, shots, goals he produce i can't believe some people just think hes a workhorse

 

[ello_jo]

Remember how he played in the rags 6-1? And in the FA Cup game against Chelsea this year? Imo he was the difference in the Chelsea league game and FA Cup game, it's not that he's not "top level" it's just that he's not foreign and doesn't play intricate football. Milner is a direct player, he won't lose the ball, he will cross it when he sees fit (a good cross at that) and he will work hos socks off for the team both offensively and defensively. When he's in the team compared to when navas is the opposition have less time on the ball and don't know what he's going to do every time he gets the ball.
Jimmy should start tomorrow.

 

[stonerblue]

I think it is criminal that Milner hasn't been played more in central midfield. He has all of the attributes to be a quality centre mid and showed this at Villa.

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

You can say it as many times as you want but it doesn't mean you're right.

 

[marco2014]

Milner will defo start there is room especially with only playing 1 up front

 

[bluemc1]

I think it is criminal that Milner hasn't been played more in central midfield. He has all of the attributes to be a quality centre mid and showed this at Villa.

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

yes he is, post above Osman Brunt level FFS

 

[CitizenTID]

I think it is criminal that Milner hasn't been played more in central midfield. He has all of the attributes to be a quality centre mid and showed this at Villa.

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

Did he shag your missus or something? You are either extremely unfair on him or incredibly ignorant of his game

 

[taconinja]

I think I see some of the same people in here complaining about Milner being underrated that were wanting us to sign Tom Huddlestone and put Garcia in the reserves.

 

[everythingchangesbutblue]

If James had the final ball he would be as good as some on here say, but, he is certainly better than some on here say.

 

[Shaelumstash]

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

Did he shag your missus or something? You are either extremely unfair on him or incredibly ignorant of his game

Not that I'm aware of! To be honest, I think the people who overrate him are ignorant of what qualities are required to be top player in the PL / Europe. All I ever hear about him is that he "puts in a shift" "works his socks off" and "covers every blade of grass."

I never hear people talking about him dictating play, having quick feet, sharp, incisive passing, reading the game, things that separate top midfielders from merely decent ones. That's because he's not a top midfielder, he's just decent.

 

[Zin 'messiah' Zimmer]

And yet Mancini, pellegrini, capello, hodgson all fail to play him there........ Interesting....

You see, a central midfield player has to be able to (1) have spacial awareness, (2) a good short game and (3) not panic under pressure, unfortunately jimmy has none of the above, he's a top lad, great 'squad' player but a top player he is not!!!

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

Did he shag your missus or something? You are either extremely unfair on him or incredibly ignorant of his game

Or knowledgable??? Which ever cap fits

Personally I know which bracket I'm in, what's funny is you automatically shoot his opinion down without backing up your own, so let's do something to establish genuine debate...

Would Milner get into the top 4s starting teams in his preferred position? Has he got the attributes to play that role? for example, short passing game? Calm enough persona under pressure? Positionally savvy?

Or

Is jimmy a utility player who can fill a number of roles yet excel in none of them consistently?

As said earlier, every one of his managers, barring a 6 months stint for villa, could see he was the above, it started with bobby Robson at Newcastle and finds itself in the same position today, a throw back to the old fashioned, socks down, never say die attitude footballer, unfortunately, in the modern game shortcomings are exposed

Oh and he hasn't shagged my mrs, he's an ugly **** and I've got more money!!!!

 

[Shaelumstash]

This, all day long.

I understand why people love and overrate Milner. He's relatable, he could live on your street, or work on the same building site, or be one of your cousins army mates. Seems like a top lad, but unfortunately he's not a top player.

Did he shag your missus or something? You are either extremely unfair on him or incredibly ignorant of his game

Or knowledgable??? Which ever cap fits

Personally I know which bracket I'm in, what's funny is you automatically shoot his opinion down without backing up your own, so let's do something to establish genuine debate...

Would Milner get into the top 4s starting teams in his preferred position? Has he got the attributes to play that role? for example, short passing game? Calm enough persona under pressure? Positionally savvy?

Or

Is jimmy a utility player who can fill a number of roles yet excel in none of them consistently?

As said earlier, every one of his managers, barring a 6 months stint for villa, could see he was the above, it started with bobby Robson at Newcastle and finds itself in the same position today, a throw back to the old fashioned, socks down, never say die attitude footballer, unfortunately, in the modern game shortcomings are exposed

Oh and he hasn't shagged my mrs, he's an ugly **** and I've got more money!!!!

It's a strange one with Milner, because you don't want to slag him off because he's such a likeable character. For the record, I do want us to keep him as a utility squad player, he's absolutely ideal for that.

But as Zin says, the intricacies of the modern game seem to by pass a lot of fans. They see the work rate and the bluster, and they assume that means someone is having a top game. The same fans who adore Milner are the same fans who hated Robinho because he didn't "track back."

I have yet to hear any Milner fan talk of the qualities he has that make him a top player. They just refer to workrate, and seem to think technique and football intelligence are insignificant things that "those foreign players with fancy dan names" have.

The reason Milner is so popular is because people see themselves in him. He could play for your Sunday league side, always be there on time, help put the nets up, play wherever you ask, put in a decent shift, he'd even jump in if it kicked off. Ask him to dictate the game from the middle against Arsenal though, it would be a different story.

 

[chris85mcfc]

Did he shag your missus or something? You are either extremely unfair on him or incredibly ignorant of his game

Or knowledgable??? Which ever cap fits

Personally I know which bracket I'm in, what's funny is you automatically shoot his opinion down without backing up your own, so let's do something to establish genuine debate...

Would Milner get into the top 4s starting teams in his preferred position? Has he got the attributes to play that role? for example, short passing game? Calm enough persona under pressure? Positionally savvy?

Or

Is jimmy a utility player who can fill a number of roles yet excel in none of them consistently?

As said earlier, every one of his managers, barring a 6 months stint for villa, could see he was the above, it started with bobby Robson at Newcastle and finds itself in the same position today, a throw back to the old fashioned, socks down, never say die attitude footballer, unfortunately, in the modern game shortcomings are exposed

Oh and he hasn't shagged my mrs, he's an ugly **** and I've got more money!!!!

It's a strange one with Milner, because you don't want to slag him off because he's such a likeable character. For the record, I do want us to keep him as a utility squad player, he's absolutely ideal for that.

But as Zin says, the intricacies of the modern game seem to by pass a lot of fans. They see the work rate and the bluster, and they assume that means someone is having a top game. The same fans who adore Milner are the same fans who hated Robinho because he didn't "track back."

I have yet to hear any Milner fan talk of the qualities he has that make him a top player. They just refer to workrate, and seem to think technique and football intelligence are insignificant things that "those foreign players with fancy dan names" have.

The reason Milner is so popular is because people see themselves in him. He could play for your Sunday league side, always be there on time, help put the nets up, play wherever you ask, put in a decent shift, he'd even jump in if it kicked off. Ask him to dictate the game from the middle against Arsenal though, it would be a different story.

I suppose the question is does he look out of place against the top teams? Does he go missing?

For me both answers are no.

Don't think anyone is saying he is the best at what he does but he has plenty of other attributes that a lot of players with similar ability couldn't bring us, just a shame to say one of them is that he's English and is probably only in the squad to fill a quota.

 

[HolisticJim]

He'd be signed by every single club to do the same job he does for us, by all the top sides.

He's better than carrick or any of the Arsenal midfield.

He's better than all of the arsenal midfield???

Now think about that and try again!

Have done and still think so. If The Arse had someone with a bit of metal such as Milner of DeJong they would be a FAR better team.