BOOK REVIEW Mr. Dependable Milner lifts the lid on his solid career

THERE ARE remarkable seasons in football, ones where everything clicks for a team and they do something special. These achievements are often worthy of a name, as they are so incredible that one word or phrase is an instant reminder of their greatness.

The ‘Invincibles’, the Arsenal team that went unbeaten in the 2003-’04 season who won the league without losing in 38 games, are one example.

The ‘Centurions’, the Manchester City team that racked up 100 points in the 2017-’18 season, are another.

These achievements just aren’t supposed to happen, as winning football games is difficult. You can dominate a fixture, have 20 attempts at goal, miss them all and get sucker-punched with the one chance your opposition gets, and you lose.

At the time of writing, after 25 Premier League games, Liverpool were on track to match and surpass the achievements of both the ‘Invincibles’ and the ‘Centurions’ - already the term ‘Invincible Centurions’ is being bandied about.

In an attempt to belittle the achievement, opposing fans decry the quality of a league that sees

Arsenal struggle for a top ten finish.

Manchester United are hovering on the edge of the Europa League places, while an incredible City side sit more than 20 points behind the leaders.

However, with all four European finalists last season being English clubs, and all Premiership teams having qualified for the knockouts this season, that opinion just doesn’t cut it. The truth is that the strength in depth in the league, top to bottom, is at an all-time high.

So, how do Liverpool do it? They have managed their budget superbly, selling high-priced assets and replacing them with better fits for their squad. There’s the Jurgen Klopp effect, which is obviously critical.

Having James Milner as Jordan Henderson’s number two is an important factor. These are leaders of men, highly respected because of their footballing intelligence and their hunger for success.

They didn’t come from Liverpool but they know exactly what it means to represent Kopites. Critically, it’s all done for the betterment of the team, not one man.

That oozes out of this week’s book, ‘James Milner - Ask a Footballer’. The unassuming nature of the Yorkshire lad comes through from the first page to the last.

‘Ask a Footballer’ is very simple but very effective. Milner invited people to send him questions, mostly on Twitter but also through other avenues (‘Hendo’ gets to ask a few too), and he answers a selection of them in a light-hearted but brutally honest way.

It’s just like an extension of his Twitter account, it’s the same Milner. In that sense, sports journalist Oliver Kay does an excellent job of catching that personality as ghostwriter. The book jumps around a bit to keep it light, but it’s perfectly balanced.

Milner starts by answering questions about his early days before jumping to-and-fro, injecting the typical match-day feel in separate chapters throughout the book. It’s an autobiography but completely different to the usual, run-of-the-mill stuff.

There’s nothing too deep about the content, you won’t get life changing info in there, but it’s light-hearted, easy going and a completely pleasant read throughout. Whether you know everything or nothing about James Milner, this should be on the to-read list. DEAN GOODISON

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