GARETH BARRY EXCLUSIVE

playing for long after that. I’m lucky I can still keep playing at my age because other players have had to retire for different reasons.

“And it helps that the gaffer (Slaven Bilic, below) has been honest with me. He said if I could prove my fitness, then there would be a contract for me. He stuck to his word.

“As soon as I got the call to go out there last week against Sheffield Wednesday, the heart was pumping again. I really enjoyed it.

“I can’t play 90 minutes week after week, every two or three days. The manager will know my role, whether it’s coming off the bench or starting for an hour. He will know what I’m capable of. I know my stats and fitness are as good as they were 10 years ago.”

And what of the nearest challenger to his crown, former Villa team-mate Milner? “In terms of mental strength, we’d be similar,” he said. “We are competitors. When it comes to training, we don’t give up easily or let someone else have our shirt.

“At Liverpool he’s not really playing regularly, so he’ll be in at the manager, chewing his ears off to play. He’ll be desperate to prove himself. That’s why I’m still here. I still want to be the best player I can be.”

Asked to name the three best players he has played with or against, Barry revealed only two.

Top was David Silva. “He adapted so well to the Premier League. The lads in the dressing room said to each other, ‘He’s too small for this, he ain’t gonna cope’, but he’s been superb for the past 10 years,” said Barry.

And second was Steven Gerrard. “He could have played anywhere. He had everything – tackling, shooting, passing. He’d have been brilliant even at right-back.

“The third I’ll leave to my book.”