Transfer shambles made Milner grow up
Glenn Roeder was within minutes of losing James Milner to Aston Villa in the last transfer window but now the Newcastle manager believes the collapse of the youngster's move to the Midlands may have transformed his career.
In a shambolic final day of wheeling and dealing in August, Milner was told to pack his bags for Villa again, just months after completing an impressive loan spelll at Villa Park, while Newcastle waited for Middlesbrough to release Mark Viduka. Neither deal went through.
Read more:
• Exclusive - FIFA helpless in Javier deal
• Odds are piling up against Curbs in dogfight
• Pearce: I'm not stupid over FA job
• Transfer Window Shopping Screamer... It's the talk of football
• Sign up to our email sports round-up
That left former Leeds trainee Milner with the unhappy prospect of returning to a club and a manager who hardly seemed to want him but Roeder has kept the England Under 21 winger in his side and Newcastle fans are finally starting to see the player who caught the imagination at Leeds and Villa blossom once again, particularly in the last month.
Milner, who faces Villa at St James's Park tomorrow night, has even started to consider an extended contract at Newcastle as Roeder attempts to bring in fresh faces before the latest window closes.
And Roeder said: "When James looks back on his career, he will look at the day he went down to Aston Villa to sign and came back hugely disappointed as a turning point.
"He was at a crossroads because it was such a disappointment for him at the time. You wonder how he is going to handle it. He could lie down and cry about it or stand up and fight for his position. I would say he will look back and feel he actually became a man.
"It's where he showed maturity. The easiest thing for James would have been to come back and sulk but he didn't, he carried on training as hard as anyone I've ever known and the three goals he scored recently were not from good luck but from sheer hard work."
