Saying goodbye is hard.
There were some of us who never thought we’d see the day when James Milner stepped away from the international fold.
But the Liverpool midfielder has hung up his England boots after 61 senior caps and 46 (forty-six!) under-21 appearances.
We can confirm that James Milner has retired from international duty after 61 appearances for the #ThreeLions. https://t.co/H2DCVOSQx7
— England (@England) August 5, 2016
Those caps brought a wealth of happy memories, like that time he came on as a 81st-minute sub against Croatia in 2009 with England already 5-1 up, or when he got a full run-out for that mile-a-minute goalless draw against Ireland in 2015.
He managed to go out on a high, with a glorious three minutes of magic at the European Championships in France.
Fans were lost for words after the former Leeds United, Newcastle United (oh yeah, he played for Newcastle), Aston Villa and Manchester City man called it quits, and you could almost picture them shedding a tear or two as they typed out their tributes.
https://twitter.com/DannyOreilly_1/status/761577613731201024
thank fuck
— Em🇹🇷 (@KingLedley_) August 5, 2016
yesssssss wot a day.
— rolo💙 (@rowling26) August 5, 2016
https://twitter.com/NapoleonKopa/status/761582280431337472
https://twitter.com/worldfootyfan/status/761579986486714370
https://twitter.com/stu_89/status/761578490542100480
https://twitter.com/UrmstonLordMUFC/status/761580785673576449
There was at least one positive, however, as Milner stepping away from the team gives Sam Allardyce a great opportunity to build on Wayne Rooney’s impressive reinvention as a midfield supremo.
Rooney next please
— Harry (@Harry_White96) August 5, 2016
It also means Milner’s club team-mate Jordan Henderson has a clear path to first-team action in an England shirt, after making such a great impression at Euro 2016.
Henderson next.
— Jack Toulson (@JackToulson12) August 5, 2016
https://twitter.com/FamousCPFC/status/761578624801800192
Thanks for everything, James. We know how much you’re going to be missed.
