Veteran Englishman James Milner is reportedly unsure of his future at Anfield, with less than a year left on his current Liverpool deal.
According to The Sun, James Milner is in the dark over his Liverpool future going into the 2019-20 campaign. The midfielder has entered the final year of his contract and wants to extend his stay at Anfield. But, there has been no developments over a new contract.
Milner admitted, “As it stands, last year we spoke to the club and asked them if they wanted to do something and they said not at that time. We haven’t heard anything since, so that’s where we are at. All I can do is concentrate on my football and do what I can. But in terms of where I am with my contract, that’s what has happened up until now and I haven’t heard anything from the club.”
This is an interesting development as regards Milner’s potential role in the squad going into the 2019-20 campaign. Jurgen Klopp might be looking to phase the veteran out of the first-team plans slowly, which could explain the lack of initiative from Liverpool in extending the former Manchester City star’s deal.
James Milner has rolled back the years for Liverpool over the last couple of seasons. Joining the club on a free transfer from Manchester City in 2015, Milner became a regular under Jurgen Klopp. The 2018-19 season alone, saw Milner lap up 45 appearances in all competitions, with a decent return of 7 goals and as many assists.
Initially played in the left-back role by Klopp after a season of shuffling various midfield roles, Andrew Robertson’s rise freed up Milner to an extent, with the Englishman was then utilised in the central midfield. While the veteran was excellent at left-back, it is at the centre of the park where Milner took over games with his calm demeanour and work rate.
Now though, Klopp has enough quality options in midfield apart from Milner. Fabinho and Naby Keita have started to excel in their roles while Georginio Wijnaldum has shown consistency beyond expectations. Jordan Henderson has also shown an ability to be a game-changer in an advanced midfield position.
Liverpool have also been linked with midfielders, pointing perhaps, to the prospect of adding another star to the midfield arsenal.
All in all, Liverpool are staffed well in midfield now, especially with Jurgen Klopp beginning to prefer 4-2-3-1 quite a bit as well. Milner is unlikely to be kept longer than his current contract that expires at the end of the 2019-20 campaign. The veteran has served Liverpool exceptionally well. But, it may be time to move on.
