Europa League final: Liverpool vs Sevilla - 'I came here to win trophies,' admits James Milner

Liverpool utility man could captain side in Europa League final but struggles to earn attention for his efforts

James Milner talks to the media alongside Jordan Henderson ahead of Wednesday's Europa League final (Getty)

The perception of James Milner is that he is a Yorkshire puritan; he whose industry in his work is of Stakhanovite proportions; he who can just get on with it and does not speak of his sacrifice or pain with any emotion whatsoever.

And yet, when you listen to him talk about his three cup finals at Manchester City where in two of them he was unused and in another he came off the substitutes bench, you realise his frustration and why he chose to join Liverpool when he easily could have stayed.

Should it be judged that the Europa League final has come a week too soon for Jordan Henderson then Milner will captain Liverpool here at St. Jakob-Park on Wednesday night, driving forward from the centre of midfield – the position he favours.

It does not particularly bother him that his record of having a hand in 22 goals this season (including 14 assists) has not really earned him the recognition it should do as an attacking creative force and he is humble enough to recognise why.

“I probably don't move as gracefully as people like Phil [Coutinho]; I'm a geezer in his mining boots from Yorkshire, lumping across the field,” he reasons, grinning.

“It might not always look pretty but as long as I'm contributing to the team that's the main thing.”

That accounts, indeed, for why it bothered him, when, having played in all of the rounds up to one of those finals for City, he was left out at Wembley.

“The one that stung me the most was when we’d won the trophy and the manager came up to me and said ‘I should have played you,’ but he never did.

"I thought that was a bit pointless – I don’t know what you’re supposed to do with that. That one probably hurt me the most, but I’d rather not say who it was…”

Such disappointments were factored into his deliberation when Liverpool offered to take him away last summer.

“I think the time we pipped Liverpool to the title at City, I played in five or six of the last seven games and then missed out on the final one [against West Ham] when we actually won it. They were the things that obviously I considered when I made the decision but that’s in the past and I’m delighted to be at Liverpool.

“I'm 30 now, and although that's not old, it's probably the latter phase of my career, and I want to play as much as I can and look back and think I left nothing out there, no wasted games. You want to be remembered for what you've won and what sort of player you are.”

James Milner limbers up on the St Jakob-Park pitch in front of Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp (Getty)

Milner admits that under the person that brought him to Anfield, Brendan Rodgers, he struggled to find the levels he expects of himself. In Jürgen Klopp, he has never worked with a manager who’s had such an immediate impact.

“Not one who has come in from the outside anyway. Obviously I have worked with club legends, like say Kevin Keegan at Newcastle and Eddie Gray at Leeds. But from one coming in from the outside, with completely no attachment to a club, especially in a new country, no.”

“That first press conference there was a real buzz about him,” Milner continues. “He’s different to other managers as well. Most probably don’t show as much emotion and he says things that maybe a lot of managers think, but won’t say.

"He is emotional and says what he thinks, rightly or wrongly. People can relate to that. It’s not an act, what he’s like on the side of the pitch or the press conference, that’s just him as a guy. That’s the good thing – what you see is what you get.”

Milner sees parallels between the mood at Liverpool now and City in 2010 when he went there from Aston Villa.

“I chose City mainly because they had a great history before but hadn't won anything for such a long time,” he said. “I had a choice of clubs but City was a chance to be part of something that was building and go again.

"I was fortunate enough to do that and I think Liverpool is the same. Amazing history, but haven't won as much as they would have liked in the recent past. I'd like to start that wave of success again and be part of that.

“When we were at City, (winning) the FA Cup win was so huge because of the belief. We knew we were a good team, but getting that first trophy gave us the drive to push on and that would be the same here.

James Milner helped Liverpool overcome Villarreal in the semi-final earlier this month (Rex)

“Playing in a final earlier in the year and losing it should also drive us on. We've had that experience of playing in a big final together.

"The Europa League is such a difficult trophy to win. Winning it, especially considering the teams we've beaten, will give us great confidence and belief to go on and have more success over the coming years.”

Despite finishing eighth in the Premier League, should Liverpool beat Sevilla, they will qualify for the Champions League.

“The funny thing is that I don't think any of us have really thought about the Champions League,” he says. “It's all about winning that trophy. Obviously, the Champions League is a nice bonus and where this club wants to be ultimately but I'm desperate to add to the list of trophies that have been won at this football club.

"That's why I came here; it's why all the boys came here. This club has a great history of winning trophies. You walk into the reception at Melwood and all the honours are listed there. I want to ensure the club has to get someone in over the summer to change that number.”