Liverpool midfielder James Milner, as decorated a veteran as any, is on the verge of transferring to Brighton & Hove Albion. Milner, 37, who joined the Merseyside club in 2015, has won six major trophies there, including both the Champions League and the Premier League.
His contract expires at the end of this season, and thus he’s eligible to move on a free. While the Brighton move isn’t finalized and official yet, it is drawing very close. Yesterday saw Reds manager Jurgen Klopp hint at an exit being imminent for James Milner.
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“He knows how highly I value him,” Klopp said of Milner at his weekly press conference on Friday. “He is an incredible part of this team and I would love to work together with him even longer.
“I said a couple of times nothing positive that happened in the last seven and a half years would have happened without James Milner.”
Brighton are currently seventh, but due to the unprecedented weirdness of this year’s scheduling have three games in hand on both sixth place Tottenham and fifth place Liverpool. The Seagulls, fresh off a thrilling win over fourth place Manchester United, are in great shape to qualify for European football for the first time in club history.
And they are far from satisfied with that, as they’re getting an early jump on their summer transfer business.
The Seagulls are set to break the club record for a transfer fee (30 million GBP) on Watford forward Joao Pedro. An agreement has been reached according to the BBC.
Paul M. Banks is the owner/manager of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
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