Player James Milner retires from football.

James Milner, the former England international midfielder, has decided to end his football career at the age of 40, after a long journey spanning 24 seasons in the Premier League during which he won all possible titles with Manchester City and then Liverpool.

Milner began his career with his childhood club Leeds United, before winning three league titles, two with Manchester City and one with Liverpool, where he also claimed the UEFA Champions League title.

With his last team Brighton, which he joined in 2023, Milner broke the record for the most appearances in the Premier League this season, finishing his career with 658 matches.

The former England international midfielder said in an Instagram post on Monday: "After 24 seasons in the Premier League, I feel that the time has come to put an end to my playing career."

He added: "From my debut at the age of sixteen with Leeds, the club I supported since childhood, to scoring my name as the youngest goalscorer in the history of the league, I could have never dreamed of the journey I have taken."

Milner became the youngest goalscorer in the history of the league at 16 years and 356 days old when he scored for Leeds in 2002.

Since then, this record has been broken by both James Vaughan and Max Doman.

Milner had stints with Newcastle and Aston Villa before joining Manchester City in 2010, where he won two Premier League titles along with other trophies. He moved to Liverpool in 2015, where he won a third Premier League title and was part of German coach Jürgen Klopp's squad that won the Champions League in 2019. Milner joined Brighton on a free transfer in 2023 and surpassed the previous record for Premier League appearances held by Gareth Barry (653 matches) in February.

On the international stage, he played 61 matches for the England national team, bringing his total appearances for clubs and country to 964 matches.

Milner wrote: "I have been lucky to experience unforgettable moments, from the fight for survival to winning titles, playing in Europe, and representing my country England in the European Championship twice and the World Cup twice."

He continued: "But what I will remember most forever are the people and friendships I have made throughout my career in the game."