Milner: Are players thinking for themselves on the pitch now?

James Milner recently led a fitness session at Warley, dubbed the worst team in the country after finishing last in Brentwood’s Sunday League's third division. A clash of cultures? Particularly when Milner admitted that he had never eaten a kebab.

"The trust broke down at that point," a joking Milner tells Sky Sports. But the Premier League's record appearance holder, still going strong at 40, enjoyed the experience. Indeed, he has been reflecting on how the pro game has changed in the 24 years since his debut.

"Pre-season is different. Back then, it was the first person who's sick and we will stop the session," he says, laughing. "But there were gains in terms of mental toughness and togetherness. I feel blessed to have played in two pretty much different eras, I suppose."

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Warley FC explained

Warley FC, were crowned as the ‘worst team’ after the Essex lads finished rock bottom of Brentwood Sunday League Division three, with only four points all season. Their luck has already changed, as Micah Richards was appointed assistant manager by Specsavers and the pundit is calling up his famous friends to whip the team into shape...

Over the next half an hour, that is the theme of our conversation as Milner offers a fascinating insight into the shifts that he has seen - for better or worse - whether that is physical or mental, technical or tactical. He is uniquely placed to understand it all.

From that debut under Terry Venables and playing under Sir Bobby Robson to working with Roberto De Zerbi and now Fabian Hurzeler at Brighton - a man nine years his junior. "Crazy," he says. Lessons from Sam Allardyce. Titles with Manuel Pellegrini and Jurgen Klopp.

He has seen it all. The best trainers? He names Mohamed Salah and Jordan Henderson. "Incredible pros. People driving standards every day." The worst? "You get the odd person who can come out without the boots tied and score 25 goals a year," he admits.

He means Sergio Aguero, right? "Yeah, I was thinking of Sergio. He was unbelievable. Daniel Sturridge was not a bad trainer per se but he could be out injured for three weeks then be the sharpest guy out in training and score an amazing goal on the Saturday."

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There is no right or wrong way, he insists, and that same principle applies to how Milner views the changes that he has witnessed in football. Ask him if the game is harder now, for example, and he offers an answer that examines the question from every angle.

"There are different ways of looking at it. Maybe the number of sprints has gone up but the pitches are better now. November to February used to be challenging on the calves. And the physicality has probably gone down in terms of the number of tackles.

"I was a winger when I first came through. The first ball that was played into you and the full-back would scythe you down from behind. That was your warning. No yellow card. There would be players now who could not play then because of the physicality.

Image: James Milner puts the 'Worst Team in the Country' through their paces [Credit: Specsavers]

"On the mental side, the dressing room was a harsher environment back then. Stronger banter in the dressing room, shall we say. But there was no social media. If you did not want to read yourself being slagged off, you didn't read the paper. Now it is everywhere."

Different players respond in different ways. "You might be able to shout at one player. Someone else needs an arm around the shoulder." Either way, it is about relationships. The best managers that he has worked with, such as Klopp, are able to cultivate them.

"You need to get that connection and you have to earn the right to do that. You can't just give them a rollicking. You need that bond, to gain that trust so that they will take the information on board," says Milner, who is now completing his third season with Brighton.

"Dressing rooms are quite complex now. At Brighton, we have young players from all these different parts of the world. It has been a great learning experience for me over the last 10 years, trying to help manage the dressing room and the characters within it."

When Milner talks of managing the dressing room, it shows how he views his role. "The team always comes first in my mind. That will never change." One cannot help but think that while this selflessness has helped his longevity, he has suffered in other ways.

Image: James Milner's Premier League minutes by position during his Brighton career

A full season playing out of position at left-back for Liverpool? "I always joke that made Andy Robertson look an even better player when he came in." The young Milner could easily have become a flashy winger instead, dribbling and shooting at every opportunity.

"Maybe sometimes I show more in training than I would on a match day," he concedes. Understated was a choice. "It is probably a personality thing but also how I have been brought up by my family and by Leeds in the academy. That is where it all started."

He explains: "When I was a winger and the manager would be talking to the midfielders or the striker, I would still be listening whereas a lot of players switched off. I wanted to understand it more tactically. That has probably helped me throughout my career.

"When I am on the wing, I know exactly how that full-back feels. I know what situations I can help him with, whether it is by talking to him or, if he is having a rough five minutes, making sure that I give him a bit more cover. It has helped me become a better player."

Image: James Milner was giving the Warley FC players some tips [Credit: Specsavers]

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Tactically, Milner has witnessed the game's evolution, although he regards progress as cyclical not linear. "Man-to-man defending, counter-pressing, it is fashion. There will be a period in the next five to 10 years when you have the little striker and big striker again."

But he accepts that there have been certain trigger points that have changed the game, the arrival of Pep Guardiola into English football in 2016 being an obvious one. "Pep coming over and how he played football is one thing. Pitches are another," he explains.

"One of the big shouts when I was starting my career was that a back pass had to be wide of the goal frame in case it bobbled over the goalkeeper's foot and went in. You play the conditions so that has had a big impact on the development of goalkeepers."

At Brighton, he has played alongside Jason Steele, a goalkeeper who he claims "could easily play as a No 6 if he wanted to" and that was a huge element under Roberto De Zerbi. "It changes the game because it gives you an extra man when they are pressing," he says.

Milner describes the approach of De Zerbi as "very different" to what he had been used to under Klopp, but he learned from both. The Italian was obsessed with the details. "He wanted each player in this exact position and to time their movements," he explains.

"Finding that free man and how you do that is something that you have maybe done a lot in your career but not realised you were doing it. And then, [working with De Zerbi] pieces together exactly how that works and gives you a deeper understanding again."

He talks of De Zerbi helping him to understand "how a team plays and why it happens" and it is natural to assume that this is yet more evidence of a changing game. "Other players would say that they were doing this anyway, they just did not call it that."

He adds: "Following the pressure, for example. That was just called moving into space or standing still. They will say that is just being reframed and done in a different way." He concludes: "Some players will say that it is too much information, others will love it."

Image: James Milner in discussion with the 'Worst Team in the Country' [Credit: Specsavers]

Milner's view is that the modern player does have more instructions to remember. "There is much more detail given in meetings." But he wonders whether this is leading to footballers who are less willing and able to problem solve in the moment, as a result.

"I think there is less of players reorganising for themselves on the pitch and feeling the game for themselves," he acknowledges. "It is not a reduction in leaders. But are those personalities going out of the game of having to think for yourself in that moment?"

He refers back to that earlier example of the full-back who is struggling. "You have a problem down one side and need to rearrange slightly. Are players waiting for the manager to tell them to do that instead of doing it themselves? I don't know," he says.

"Some players are reluctant now to make small changes within the game if something is causing them a problem. They might ask the manager first instead of reorganising or talking between themselves. It comes with games and having the trust of the manager."

Milner has that trust from Hurzeler. "He has been absolutely brilliant for me." In particular, he mentions how the Brighton boss treated him following his injury last season, involving him in the meetings. So, when he does retire, is there a future in coaching beyond Warley?

"I have done my badges and there is definitely stuff that appeals to me." But he is not totally convinced. "The pressure these guys are under is relentless." And the game is always changing. But James Milner has shown that he can adapt to anything it throws at him.

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