Profile Football Stars | James Milner | Milner's talent in football, cricket, and long-distance running was at a very young recognized age. While at Leeds United, he spent time on loan at Swindon Town to gain experience as a first-team player. Following his move to Newcastle United, he was loaned to Aston Villa for a season. Milner was born in Wortley, and raised in Horsforth, Leeds, he played most of his childhood football for Westbrook Lane Primary School in Horsforth. Graeme Coulson, a coach from Rawdon, recognized Milner's talent and persuaded him to play for Rawdon in Several tournaments, Including a tournament at Rawdon Meadows, where Milner scored four goals in their victory in the final.
The appearance made him the second youngest player ever to play in the Premier League, at the age of 16 years and 309 days. Milner made his first appearance for Newcastle United during Their pre-season tour of Asia, scoring his first goal for the club in a 1-1 draw against Kitchee, in Hong Kong. At the start of the 2005-06 season, Milner scored in Newcastle's 3-1 away win against FK ZTS Dubnica in the Intertoto Cup, and also set up Shearer for the team's third goal. Villa manager David O'Leary, who had managed Milner at Leeds, was happy to acquire Milner in this deal, saying he believed That Villa got the better of the deal and that 'he hoped to improve him as a player.
Milner made his Villa debut on 12 September 2005 in a Premiership match against West Ham. Throughout the season Milner was positive about his team. Newcastle's players and manager Glenn Roeder reacted Positively to Milner's return at the start of the 2006-07 season. Milner Roeder praised for the way he had handled the failed Villa transfer, although Roeder's own handling of the Negotiations was criticized. That Roeder confirmed he would play Milner in "plenty of games" during the season. This proved to be the case, as Milner was a starter in the Newcastle side for the entire season. Newcastle made a poor start in the Premier League, but in European competition, Milner played a key role in Newcastle Helping advance through the group stage of the UEFA Cup.
On 17 August 2010 it was reported Agreed That Aston Villa had a deal with Manchester City to sell Milner subject to a medical. Milner made his debut for City on 23 August 2010 in a 3-0 win against Liverpool , where he set up the first goal for former Villa teammate Gareth Barry. Milner scored his first competitive goal for Manchester City in an FA Cup third-round match at Leicester City the which ended in a 2-2 draw. Milner scored his first Premier League goal for Manchester City against Everton on 24 September. Two matches later, he scored his second Premier League goal for Manchester City against former club Aston Villa in a 4-1 win after initially starting the attack with a 60-yard diagonal cross-field pass and then ending with a curling finish from 25 yards out .
On 3 January 2012, Milner scored his third goal of the season, a penalty, against Liverpool. Manchester City won the match 3-0. During a Champions League away match against Napoli, Milner played as right-back after Manchester City's manager Roberto Mancini bought on Johnson for Zabaleta.
After representing England at the U-15 and U-17 levels, Milner was Promoted to the U-20 level and called up for the 2003 World Youth Championship. Milner scored his first goal for the England Under-21 side during the 2004-05 season in a qualification game for the 2007 European Under-21 Championship, against Wales. Despite club's domestic troubles, he continued to make-progress at international level, scoring the winning goal for the England Under-21 side in a 3-2 win over Switzerland. In August 2009, Milner made his debut for the full England team, when he came on as a substitute in a friendly match against the Netherlands for the final 23 minutes. England won the match 5-1 to secure latter qualification for the 2010 World Cup. In England's third match against Slovenia, he set up the only goal of the match with a cross for Jermain Defoe.
Personal information
Full name James Philip Milner
Date of birth 4 January 1986 (age 26)
Place of birth Wortley, Leeds, England
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 1/2 in)
Playing position Midfielder
Club information
Current club Manchester City
Number 7
Youth career
1996-2002 Leeds United
Senior career
years Team
2002-2004 Leeds United 48 (5)
2003 Swindon Town (loan) 6 (2)
2004-2008 Newcastle United 94 (6)
2005-2006 Aston Villa (loan) 27 (1)
2008-2010 Aston Villa 73 (11)
2010-Manchester City 57 (3)
National team
2001-2002 England U16 6 (5)
2002-2003 England U17 11 (8)
2003 England U19 1 (0)
2003-2004 England U20 6 (4)
2004-2009 England U21 46 (9)
2009-England 24 (0)
Honours
Club
Manchester City
FA Cup (1): 2010-11
Aston Villa
League Cup Runner-Up: 2009-10
England
UEFA European Under-21 Championship Runner-Up: 2009
Individual
PFA Young Player of the Year (1): 2009-10
PFA Premier League Team of the Year (1): 2009-10
