The record appearance holders in the Premier League – Will James Milner take top spot?

​

Extended Brighton deal 

Last week, James Milner penned a new one-year deal at Brighton and the former England international now appears destined to break the all-time appearance record in the Premier League. Now 38, Milner will embark on the 23rd season of his career next season after making his professional debut in November 2022.

The versatile midfielder was then the second-youngest player to play in the Premier League aged 16 and 309 days for Leeds United and he became the youngest ever scorer just one month after his debut. Milner has won the English top-flight on three occasions – twice with Manchester City and once with Liverpool – and he’s also played for Newcastle and Aston Villa in the Premier League. Milner has amassed 634 appearances in the Premier League and he will have former England teammate Gareth Barry’s all-time record in his sights.

Barry holds the all-time record with 653 appearances in the Premier League but Milner needs just 20 appearances to surpass his former teammate. The duo played together at both Aston Villa and Manchester City, whilst they also played for England together at the 2010 World Cup. 

Only two other players have played more than 600 games in the Premier League, Ryan Giggs and Frank Lampard. Impressively, Giggs made all his appearances for Manchester United and he remains the most decorated player in Premier League history with 13 titles. Lampard began his career at West Ham United before becoming a legend at Chelsea and he turned out for Manchester City during the twilight of his career. Perhaps surprisingly, only two goalkeepers make the list in David James and Mark Schwarzer while Jamie Carragher ranks ninth but he was famously unable to ever win the Premier League with Liverpool.