The Milner Novela... Final episode page 296

[Shrek]

I'd swap him for Ireland, Richards, and Hart.

Then buy Bentley and Doyle and sell all the rejects. We'd be a better team IMO.

Agree!

And before people bang on about Doyle he is quality for less than 10mill, which suits a team like us who are on a budget.

[MattW]

This article just posted in the Guardian relies on an inside briefing by Manchester City. That is: their impression is supposedly that Milner wants to leave and that they'd be prepared to pay £30m. The 'leaks' are designed to give an air of inevitability to the transfer. It's different to the Guardian article yesterday that suggested Milner wanted to stay.

It probably depends on how much we're prepared to pay him (which this article suggests we'll find out soon) because no doubt he's been promised a lot by them.

[Arsey]

Santa Cruz has been a flop and Ireland's a bling merchant and slightly mad - great swop..?

Milners fantastic engine and attitude naturally endears him to the fans but in my opinion his ability is limited and often leaves gaps whilst running around like a headless chicken.

He is not in the frame of a top international midfielder like your Lampards and your Gerrards - not by a long stretch.

Ireland would be more than a capable replacement and Santa Cruz would thrive on the service Ash would supply. It would be unrealistic to want money as well seen as Santa Cruz cost them a fortune only a year ago.

Milner is better than those two were at his age. He will be the most important player at his club over the next 5 years, whichever club he is at. I can't envisage any possible situation for Villa where selling Milner this summer is a better option than keeping.

What would it cost Man City to buy a 25 year old Lampard or Gerrard in this current market?

At 25 he was better than Gerrard...

are you sure about that one....

you mean 5 years ago when Gerrard pretty much single handedly won them the Champions league....

Milner is a very good player, model pro.... but Steven Gerrard he isn't and never will be.  This is from someone who hates the scouse diving bastard.

[JUAN PABLO]

Ashley Young too. They are seriously becoming cnuuts ....

[adrenachrome]

In today's Independent, they reported that sources from Citeh were not expecting to complete the deal until very late in the transfer window.

If this is true, it is worrying.

[Arsey]

Santa Cruz has been a flop and Ireland's a bling merchant and slightly mad - great swop..?

Milners fantastic engine and attitude naturally endears him to the fans but in my opinion his ability is limited and often leaves gaps whilst running around like a headless chicken.

He is not in the frame of a top international midfielder like your Lampards and your Gerrards - not by a long stretch.

Ireland would be more than a capable replacement and Santa Cruz would thrive on the service Ash would supply. It would be unrealistic to want money as well seen as Santa Cruz cost them a fortune only a year ago.

Milner is better than those two were at his age. He will be the most important player at his club over the next 5 years, whichever club he is at. I can't envisage any possible situation for Villa where selling Milner this summer is a better option than keeping.

What would it cost Man City to buy a 25 year old Lampard or Gerrard in this current market?

At 25 he was better than Gerrard...

are you sure about that one....

you mean 5 years ago when Gerrard pretty much single handedly won them the Champions league....

Milner is a very good player, model pro.... but Steven Gerrard he isn't and never will be.  This is from someone who hates the scouse diving bastard.

Gerrard was also voted the third best footballer in the world when he was Jimmy's age.

[KevinGage]

Lampard was pretty tasty at 24/25 too.

That period covering Ranieri's final season (Finished 3rd -15 goals scored) and Mourinho's first (Finished Champions - 19 goals scored).

[TheSandman]

In today's Independent, they reported that sources from Citeh were not expecting to complete the deal until very late in the transfer window.

If this is true, it is worrying.

Tomorrow morning I shall book a last minute three month holiday to Siberia. Hopefully I can avoid the James Milner and Cesc Fabregas Transfer Sagas there.

[ozzjim]

The galling inevitability of it says tell em 60 million for the pair and get it over with, buy Bentley, a top drawer centre midfield player, a decent right back and 2 centre forwards, still be quids in and get on with our lives. Or let it drag all summer and buy Graham Dorrans for 15 million after 3 decent games in the prem for albion. Hmmmm... Martin, which will it be.

[Villa'Zawg]

Santa Cruz has been a flop and Ireland's a bling merchant and slightly mad - great swop..?

Milners fantastic engine and attitude naturally endears him to the fans but in my opinion his ability is limited and often leaves gaps whilst running around like a headless chicken.

He is not in the frame of a top international midfielder like your Lampards and your Gerrards - not by a long stretch.

Ireland would be more than a capable replacement and Santa Cruz would thrive on the service Ash would supply. It would be unrealistic to want money as well seen as Santa Cruz cost them a fortune only a year ago.

Milner is better than those two were at his age. He will be the most important player at his club over the next 5 years, whichever club he is at. I can't envisage any possible situation for Villa where selling Milner this summer is a better option than keeping.

What would it cost Man City to buy a 25 year old Lampard or Gerrard in this current market?

At 25 he was better than Gerrard...

are you sure about that one....

you mean 5 years ago when Gerrard pretty much single handedly won them the Champions league....

Milner is a very good player, model pro.... but Steven Gerrard he isn't and never will be.  This is from someone who hates the scouse diving bastard.

Gerrard was also voted the third best footballer in the world when he was Jimmy's age.

Lampard was pretty tasty at 24/25 too.

That period covering Ranieri's final season (Finished 3rd -15 goals scored) and Mourinho's first (Finished Champions - 19 goals scored).

James Milner is 24. Check Lampard and Gerrard's records at the same age. They were both a year or two older when they made the breakthroughs you describe.

Milner has all of the attributes those two had at his age and more.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

Sky are reporting that Milner will only decide his future after the World Cup. Sounds hopeful.

Why ?

That says to me, 'I want to focus totally on the World Cup thank you all the same'.

I, like many, would like a 'I want to stay at Villa Park and am sitting down with Martin O'Neill and Randy Lerner after the World Cup to discuss things - and I am only 2 years into a 4 year contract at Aston Villa'.

He's playing it by the Club's guidelines. He's also training with Capello, the best thing he could possibly say is what he said - I don't want to get involved now. It's for the Club to decide. He will sit down with the Club when he returns. Clever lad.

Some want sex on the first night. James is not that type of lad.

[KevinGage]

Santa Cruz has been a flop and Ireland's a bling merchant and slightly mad - great swop..?

Milners fantastic engine and attitude naturally endears him to the fans but in my opinion his ability is limited and often leaves gaps whilst running around like a headless chicken.

He is not in the frame of a top international midfielder like your Lampards and your Gerrards - not by a long stretch.

Ireland would be more than a capable replacement and Santa Cruz would thrive on the service Ash would supply. It would be unrealistic to want money as well seen as Santa Cruz cost them a fortune only a year ago.

Milner is better than those two were at his age. He will be the most important player at his club over the next 5 years, whichever club he is at. I can't envisage any possible situation for Villa where selling Milner this summer is a better option than keeping.

What would it cost Man City to buy a 25 year old Lampard or Gerrard in this current market?

At 25 he was better than Gerrard...

are you sure about that one....

you mean 5 years ago when Gerrard pretty much single handedly won them the Champions league....

Milner is a very good player, model pro.... but Steven Gerrard he isn't and never will be.  This is from someone who hates the scouse diving bastard.

Gerrard was also voted the third best footballer in the world when he was Jimmy's age.

Lampard was pretty tasty at 24/25 too.

That period covering Ranieri's final season (Finished 3rd -15 goals scored) and Mourinho's first (Finished Champions - 19 goals scored).

James Milner is 24. Check Lampard and Gerrard's records at the same age. They were both a year or two older when they made the breakthroughs you describe.

Milner has all of the attributes those two had at his age and more.

How old do you think Steven Gerrard is, VD?  Because it might surprise you to learn that he is 29. 5 years ago he was part of a Liverpool side that finished 3rd and won the FA Cup. He bagged 23 goals that year.

The season before that he bagged 13 goals in their EC winning season. He has been pretty much the focal point of that side since 2000/01, the year they won the LC, FA Cup and UEFA. And an England regular dating back to that time.

Lampard has been the focal point of that Chelsea side since 2002. A Chelsea side regularly in the hunt for major trophies and consistent CL qualifiers. He was tipped to be one of the first casualties of the Abramovich era when Roman pitched up and started throwing money about in 2003. Yet the challenge of better players coming in brought his game on further, to the point that since then he cemented an England place and regularly finishes a season with a goal return that a forward would be proud of.

I'd be interested to know what is the basis for your assertion that Milner is better than both at the same age, as the stats and basic common sense don't back that up. It sounds bollocks to me, but with the illuminating explanation you're about to give I'm sure it will all become clear.

What criteria are you using for that conclusion?

[dave.woodhall]

I don't want to get all "He isn't that good" churlish because he is, but he isn't THAT good. To say Milner would be the most important player for any team in the world for the next five years is ridiculous - more important than Rooney, Torres or Ronaldo? To put it into perspective, would Milner get in the all-time best Villa XI of anyone over the age of 30? I don't think so.

[KevinGage]

I think he has the potential to be very good for us, perhaps even our low-rent version of Lampard or Gerrard (but not as good, obv).

Carrick has held down a place in that United side for a number of years, ditto Fletcher. I think Milner could at the very least better those -if he hasn't already.

A very good player, with the drive and determination to get better. But not an elite player for mine.

[BannedUserIAT]

Given our level of coaching, I don't think we've seen the very best of Milner, irrespective of his age. Had he been at one of the Top 4, I feel he'd be even better than he is already.

As has been said already, he's the kind of player we can build a team around for a long time. We must keep him.