For many who throng the terraces or stand pontificating in front of bar-room screens, Milner embodies dogged, disciplined traits when more intoxicating qualities are craved. Milner is steady not spectacular, providing a convenient lightning rod for any criticism of yeoman England.
Barbs trip off many tongues, either dismissing his worth or damning him with faint praise. He is the former schoolboy cross-country champion who just runs and runs. He is neither the quickest nor capable of technical pyrotechnics. He is the honest English workhorse in an era when Spanish thoroughbreds canter elegantly across the land.
He is also due a reappraisal and not simply because he approaches the 10th anniversary of his immersion in the professional game. A rethink is required on a footballer who returned to Luton from Chisinau in the early hours this morning with reputation enhanced.
Any meaningful assessment of England’s 5-0 victory must carry the obvious caveat that Moldova make minnows look like sharks. A truer picture of any bright new dawn under Roy Hodgson will emerge only when the opposition can organise themselves defensively, keep possession and mount threatening attacks. Moldova painfully lacked such abilities.
So due caution is required when dissecting this game. Along with the positive impressions made by Tom Cleverley and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain must be added proper acknowledgement of Milner’s substantial contribution. He may struggle to force his way into Roberto Mancini’s first-choice plans at Manchester City but Milner has become established in Hodgson’s England.
Hodgson knows that Milner is not the type to receive glowing testimonies from outside the dressing-room but the England manager, and the players, appreciate his sweat-soaked importance to the collective. Milner now has to prove he can deliver against vastly superior foe to Moldova.
But every team needs its Milners, its stage-builders who allow others to perform. Every team is grateful to its “water-carriers” to borrow Eric Cantona’s haughty view of Didier Deschamps. Throughout his career, Milner has assisted celebrated names from Mark Viduka to Alan Shearer, Patrick Kluivert to Mario Balotelli.
Milner is the man who serves the stars.
He offers balance and tactical awareness to the side, providing the adhesive that helps hold the unit together. The case for Milner would be undermined if England could field a more defensively-disciplined right-back than Glen Johnson. Even if Johnson were unavailable, the likes of Kyle Walker and Micah Richards would appreciate Milner’s selfless efforts. He covers instinctively.
Even first-year students of Hodgson’s teams understand he is a conservative coach, rarely unleashing two out-and-out adrenalin-filled attacking wide-players. If he has a roving Oxlade-Chamberlain coming off one flank, Hodgson likes a Milner-type to keep the shape and numbers in midfield.
The cramped, chaotic home of FC Zimbru saw the sustained appliance of Milner’s strengths. This was the most eye-catching of his 32 internationals. He got beyond the Moldovan left-back, hitting the line. His accurate cutback allowed Cleverley to force the fortuitous penalty for England’s first goal. For the third, Milner’s simple pass set Oxlade-Chamberlain on his way through to set up Jermain Defoe. He scored the fourth, taking responsibility when Danny Welbeck, Theo Walcott and Cleverley risked over-elaboration.
It was the type of finish he has conjured up down the years, appearing on the edge of the area to meet the ball first-time. He knows when and where to make the most productive runs. A good strike against Aston Villa last year was a classic example. The City man’s refusal to celebrate scoring against his former club also signalled his qualities as a man. Milner has integrity, a touch of humility.
He is Mr Sensible, a solid ambassador for club, country and his profession. He has his own foundation and lives a quiet life.
Interviewed early on in his Leeds United career, Milner was asked who he preferred: “J-Lo or Beyoncé?” He replied with a firm: “Neither, I prefer my girlfriend”. He is teetotal, the possessor of 11 GCSEs, the antithesis of the flash-the-cash footballer. Milner was born mature.
He deserves respect. On Friday, he scored, schemed, raced forward, tracked back, earned praise from Hodgson, yet garnered little public acclaim. Maybe he is a victim of his own versatility. He started on the right and ended on the left. A former PFA Young Player of the Year, Milner can play central midfield, in the hole, even right-back.
He’s almost as adaptable as that luminary Paul Madeley, another local lad who graduated through the Leeds ranks in the sixties. Milner is comfortable on his left foot as well as his right, a result of his father Peter making him work hard on his weaker foot.
Often perceived as simply a straight-line runner, there is more fluidity and dexterity to Milner’s game than usually credited. During City’s momentous 6-1 defeat of Manchester United last season, Milner played a superb pass to David Silva, moved quickly to receive the return before crossing accurately for Balotelli to score. Maybe Milner needs to try such moments of skill more often, although he is not the gambling type.
Milner is only 26 yet Nov 10 marks a decade since his first-team debut, coming on for Jason Wilcox with six minutes remaining and Leeds inching to a 4-3 success over West Ham. Having made his name at Leeds, the club where he had been a fan and ball-boy, Milner moved on to Newcastle United, Villa and now City. Even if Mancini remains to be convinced of Milner’s merits, and particularly his ability to shine against the most demanding opposition, Hodgson is a confirmed admirer.
Whatever the scepticism in many quarters, Milner will win many caps under Hodgson
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