Feb 10, 2026, 02:13 PM
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James Milner is expected to usurp Gareth Barry's appearance record in the Premier League but will do so having played significantly fewer minutes.
If Milner plays for Brighton & Hove Albion away at Aston Villa on Wednesday, he will match Barry's record of 653 appearances in the Premier League.
The 40-year-old would then have the rest of the season, starting on Feb. 21 away at Brentford, to claim the outright record.
Remarkably, he has played 14,031 fewer minutes than Barry in the competition.
James Milner has played 14,031 minutes fewer than Gareth Barry. Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images
That is equivalent to 155.5 full matches, or four complete Premier League seasons of appearing in each match.
Milner also has far fewer Premier League starts than Barry. He has started 435 matches, compared to Barry's 618.
Milner already holds the record for the most appearances from the substitute's bench in Premier League history with 217. Barry only came on 35 times.
For this season, and the past three, the Premier League rule for the quantity of substitutes allowed increased from three to five enabling greater opportunity to come off the bench.
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Milner's Premier League career began with Leeds United when he came off the bench to replace Jason Wilcox, who is now Manchester United's director of football.
He became the competition's youngest-ever scorer aged 16 years and 356 days. He remains the second-youngest, with James Vaughan holding the record since 2005.
He went on to play for Newcastle United, Aston Villa, Manchester City, Liverpool, Brighton and England.
Milner has won three Premier Leagues, two FA Cups and a Champions League.
Barry started with Aston Villa, Man City, Everton, West Bromwich Albion and England. He won the league with City.
ESPN Global Research contributed to this report.