Liverpool’s James Milner was part of a defiant team display as the Reds defeated Manchester City 1-0 on Sunday, and the vice-captain described it as a “confidence boost.”
There were concerns about Milner’s role on the right side of the defense against Phil Foden before kickoff at Anfield.
But he allayed them emphatically, with a standout performance as the Reds won for only the third time in the Premier League this season, against their major rivals.
The narrative throughout the game was Erling Haaland’s clash with Virgil van Dijk – which the Dutchman undoubtedly triumphed in – but the Norwegian was perhaps more interested in Milner.
A former Leeds youth product, who came through the academy while the striker’s father, Alf-Inge Haaland, was part of the senior side, the No. 7 shared a mutual connection.
. @JanAageFjortoft spurte Milner om Haaland etter 3️⃣ poeng mot Manchester City#ViaplayPL pic.twitter.com/7fpEAu5l1K
— Viaplay Fotball (@ViaplayFotball) October 16, 2022
When asked whether Haaland had mentioned “Leeds, Leeds, Leeds” again, Milner told Viaplay that they had a “little chat.”
“I can confirm he said he was going to sign for Leeds when we played against him a few years ago, and he was obviously lying, so that’s disappointing!” recalled the 36-year-old.
“We had a little talk, yeah…”
Milner went on to thank the Anfield crowd for creating an “absolutely outstanding” atmosphere that fueled a “fantastic team performance” in which “the boys sacrificed themselves for the team.”
Not only for Milner himself, but the victory may have proved critics wrong when it came to Liverpool’s hopes for the campaign.
“It’s blah to us, but there’s a lot of talks outside,” the vice-captain said.
“For us, we just try to keep improving.
“We know we haven’t been playing as well as we can, we’ve had issues with injuries and changes being made and not hit our stride as we would like.
“But for us, we just try to take as we always do, try to fight back to being our best, work through those issues on the training field, put everything into every game.
“That’s what this team will always do.
“That should be a big confidence boost, to be able to put in a performance like that against City and get a win.”
