James Milner does battle Stateside, encouraged by Sir Alex Ferguson’s admission that City are now posing a real threat to champions UnitedCity's Premier League title hopes have already been given a boost – by Red rival Sir Alex Ferguson.
The United boss said recently that he considered the Blues to be a ‘thorn in the side’ of his team, and tipped the outfit he dubbed ‘noisy neighbours’ to set up a clamour in the coming season’s title race.
That kind of talk is music to the ears of City stars, already brimming with confidence and intent after their FA Cup final victory and the powerful surge into third place in the league.
City midfielder James Milner said Ferguson’s words were an unexpected lift.
“It’s a boost to hear that, you hear positive and negative things said about you, but we’ll get on with our job,” said the England star.
“We know we have to improve as a club and a team but we think we can carry on moving forward.
“You look to improve every year and we did that last year. Now we’ll be looking to do that again. Finishing third was a very good season for us, winning the FA Cup.
“But now we’ll be looking to top that, so a natural progression would be to finish second and really push hard for the title. We think it could be a possibility.”
Frustrating
While the coming season is a big one for City, it is also a vital one for Milner, whose debut season for the club was, at times,frustrating.
After a big start with a fine display in the 3-0 thrashing of Liverpool, Milner failed to nail down a regular place as Nigel de Jong, Gareth Barry and Yaya Toure dominated in his preferred central midfield role.
And even in the wide positions where he has usually played for his country, Milner found the competition at City tough.
But he finished the season strongly, especially when replacing Barry as the roving midfield man, and is looking to make forward strides in the new term.
“It is a big season for me,” he said. “You come to a new club and it takes time to find your bearings.
“But now I want to kick on, get a foothold in the team and prove to people that I’m good enough to be here and in the team regularly. Winning silverware is the only reason why I came here. We did that last season and that showed it was the right move for me.
“You want to be challenging for trophies and playing in the top competitions and obviously that’s the Champions League.
“At the end of your career you look back and you want to see a trophy cabinet full of winner’s medals.
“You want to be able to tell people I’ve won this, this and this. That’s what drives me on. That’s what I feel I can achieve at this club – I want to be the best player I can and win trophies.”
Milner makes no bones about the fact that he hankers after a central midfield position, but he accepts it is part of life at City.
He has good examples around him. It is only recently that Vincent Kompany, double player of the year, conceded that he might not end up in the defensive midfield role he always craved, while Pablo Zabaleta also uncomplainingly sacrifices personal preference for the sake of the team by playing left back and occasionally in midfield.
Improve
“That’s what happens when you’re at a top club like this,” said Milner. “You want to be pushed as a player, you want to improve and that’s what happens when you’ve got competition just to get in the team.
“When you’ve got two or three top class players in each position it’s good for everyone. It’s good for the club, the manager and the players because it really challenges you.
“It will make me a better player watching these guys play and train. You know you have to play well and train well if you’re going to get a shirt on the Saturday.”
With the Carlos Tevez saga rumbling on, Milner adopts a familiar line, saying that no player is bigger than the club, especially these days, as that club can go out and buy a replacement, as City are preparing to do in the form of Sergio Aguero.
“If Carlos goes he’ll leave a big gap,” said Milner. “He’s a top player, we’ve said that before and he’s done brilliantly here.
“It’s between the club and the player what happens with him but if he goes it’s our job to make sure he’s not missed out on that field. What we know is that this club is fantastically run right from the top downwards. The owner is fantastic.
“We know that if Carlos does go they will bring in a player who is top quality as well and I’m sure whoever that may be will be top quality as well.
“You look at the forwards we’ve got here – Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko – and there is top class here already.
“Carlos has shown over the years what a great player he is, but it’s not all about him, there’s quality all over the park at this club now.”
Aguero has already been lined up as a perfect replacement for his countryman Tevez, and that meets with Milner’s approval.
“I do watch Spanish football and I know all about how good he is,” he said. “You hear the sort of names that are being linked with the club and you just feel they will go out and sign the right player to replace Carlos if he does go.
“You’ve got to be a class player to come to this club now. This summer has been quiet but the guys he has brought, Stefan Savic and Gael Clichy, are great players.
We know they will be good signings.”
The United boss said recently that he considered the Blues to be a ‘thorn in the side’ of his team, and tipped the outfit he dubbed ‘noisy neighbours’ to set up a clamour in the coming season’s title race.
That kind of talk is music to the ears of City stars, already brimming with confidence and intent after their FA Cup final victory and the powerful surge into third place in the league.
City midfielder James Milner said Ferguson’s words were an unexpected lift.
“It’s a boost to hear that, you hear positive and negative things said about you, but we’ll get on with our job,” said the England star.
“We know we have to improve as a club and a team but we think we can carry on moving forward.
“You look to improve every year and we did that last year. Now we’ll be looking to do that again. Finishing third was a very good season for us, winning the FA Cup.
“But now we’ll be looking to top that, so a natural progression would be to finish second and really push hard for the title. We think it could be a possibility.”
Frustrating
While the coming season is a big one for City, it is also a vital one for Milner, whose debut season for the club was, at times,frustrating.
After a big start with a fine display in the 3-0 thrashing of Liverpool, Milner failed to nail down a regular place as Nigel de Jong, Gareth Barry and Yaya Toure dominated in his preferred central midfield role.
And even in the wide positions where he has usually played for his country, Milner found the competition at City tough.
But he finished the season strongly, especially when replacing Barry as the roving midfield man, and is looking to make forward strides in the new term.
“It is a big season for me,” he said. “You come to a new club and it takes time to find your bearings.
“But now I want to kick on, get a foothold in the team and prove to people that I’m good enough to be here and in the team regularly. Winning silverware is the only reason why I came here. We did that last season and that showed it was the right move for me.
“You want to be challenging for trophies and playing in the top competitions and obviously that’s the Champions League.
“At the end of your career you look back and you want to see a trophy cabinet full of winner’s medals.
“You want to be able to tell people I’ve won this, this and this. That’s what drives me on. That’s what I feel I can achieve at this club – I want to be the best player I can and win trophies.”
Milner makes no bones about the fact that he hankers after a central midfield position, but he accepts it is part of life at City.
He has good examples around him. It is only recently that Vincent Kompany, double player of the year, conceded that he might not end up in the defensive midfield role he always craved, while Pablo Zabaleta also uncomplainingly sacrifices personal preference for the sake of the team by playing left back and occasionally in midfield.
Improve
“That’s what happens when you’re at a top club like this,” said Milner. “You want to be pushed as a player, you want to improve and that’s what happens when you’ve got competition just to get in the team.
“When you’ve got two or three top class players in each position it’s good for everyone. It’s good for the club, the manager and the players because it really challenges you.
“It will make me a better player watching these guys play and train. You know you have to play well and train well if you’re going to get a shirt on the Saturday.”
With the Carlos Tevez saga rumbling on, Milner adopts a familiar line, saying that no player is bigger than the club, especially these days, as that club can go out and buy a replacement, as City are preparing to do in the form of Sergio Aguero.
“If Carlos goes he’ll leave a big gap,” said Milner. “He’s a top player, we’ve said that before and he’s done brilliantly here.
“It’s between the club and the player what happens with him but if he goes it’s our job to make sure he’s not missed out on that field. What we know is that this club is fantastically run right from the top downwards. The owner is fantastic.
“We know that if Carlos does go they will bring in a player who is top quality as well and I’m sure whoever that may be will be top quality as well.
“You look at the forwards we’ve got here – Mario Balotelli and Edin Dzeko – and there is top class here already.
“Carlos has shown over the years what a great player he is, but it’s not all about him, there’s quality all over the park at this club now.”
Aguero has already been lined up as a perfect replacement for his countryman Tevez, and that meets with Milner’s approval.
“I do watch Spanish football and I know all about how good he is,” he said. “You hear the sort of names that are being linked with the club and you just feel they will go out and sign the right player to replace Carlos if he does go.
“You’ve got to be a class player to come to this club now. This summer has been quiet but the guys he has brought, Stefan Savic and Gael Clichy, are great players.
We know they will be good signings.”
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