James Milner – Has Premier League record pursuit become a problem for Brighton?

Should Milner equal Barry’s record on Wednesday evening, he will do so having played significantly fewer minutes than Barry did over his career.

In total, Barry spent 54,439 minutes on the pitch compared to 40,408 for Milner.

However, it is about what you do with that time playing and Milner has certainly contributed plenty when he has played – scoring 56 goals and providing 90 assists.

Those are statistics that compare favourably with Barry’s record of 53 goals and 64 assists.

Milner’s longevity is certainly impressive.

Almost half the players to have played in the Premier League since it was formed in 1992-93 (5,094) have either played alongside or against Milner.

Since his debut in the 2002-03 campaign, he has faced 99.9% of the 876 other players to have played at least 100 games in the last 24 Premier League seasons.

The only one of the above who has so far avoided facing Milner is Brentford‘s Nathan Collins, but that could change when the Bees play Brighton on 21 February.

Plenty of Premier League managers have also become well acquainted with Milner over the decades. Including caretakers, he has made a Premier League appearance under 21 different managers – two more than any other player.