James Milner has made a firm commitment to persist in his career even after surpassing Ryan Giggs on the list of most appearances in the Premier League.

Brighton’s James Milner has achieved an “amazing thing” by surpassing Ryan Giggs on the all-time Premier League appearance list, according to TNT Sports’ Peter Crouch.

The English midfielder expressed his desire to continue playing in the English top flight after featuring for 72 minutes in Brighton’s 0-0 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Amex Stadium. Milner’s 633rd top-flight game moved him ahead of Manchester United legend Giggs, and now he has his sights set on catching former Aston Villa teammate Gareth Barry, who retired in 2020 with 20 more Premier League games to his name.

At 38 years old, Milner believes he still has more to offer. When asked about chasing down Barry’s record, he responded, “We’ll see. It’s the game that’s the biggest thing tonight. We wanted to win and that’s disappointing. Game-wise, hopefully I’ve got a few more in me.”

Milner began his career with Leeds United and made his Premier League debut in 2002. He became the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history at the age of 16 years and 356 days. Although that record has since been broken, Milner has continued to make headlines throughout his career, winning league titles with Manchester City and Liverpool, and representing Aston Villa and Newcastle.

Milner attributes his longevity to luck, hard work, and taking advantage of opportunities. He emphasized the importance of enjoying the game and putting in the daily work. With 879 club appearances and 61 caps for England, Milner has had the privilege of playing for some incredible football clubs. Despite making his debut a decade after the formation of the Premier League, Milner has competed against nearly half of the players who have featured in the division.

While he may not surpass Barry’s record this season with only 17 games remaining, Peter Crouch is confident that Milner will achieve the feat next season. Crouch, who played alongside Milner at the international level, believes Milner’s good friend Barry will be disappointed to lose the record. Crouch praised Milner’s achievement, stating, “It’s no mean feat to get 600 appearances in the Premier League. It’s an incredible achievement to go beyond that.”

Milner’s record-breaking accomplishment is indeed remarkable, and he will undoubtedly cherish the moment when he tells his children and grandchildren that he is the record appearance holder in the Premier League.

As for the top five Premier League appearances list, it currently stands as follows:
1. Gareth Barry – 653
2. James Milner – 633
3. Ryan Giggs – 632
4. Frank Lampard – 609
5. David James – 572.