- James Milner and his Liverpool team-mates are enjoying a fantastic campaign
- Jurgen Klopp’s men are on the brink of securing Champions League final spot
- Milner has played a pivotal role in Liverpool’s brilliant run this season
Liverpool utility man James Milner is still showing how useful and dangerous he can be in this season’s Champions League.
Milner and his Liverpool team-mates are on the brink of securing their Champions League final spot after emphatically beating Roma 5-2 at Anfield in the first-leg of their semi-final.
Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane, who were Liverpool’s goalscorers on Tuesday night, may be stealing the headlines this season but Milner deserves plenty of credit for the club’s brilliant run.
James Milner has now produced nine assists for Liverpool in this season’s Champions League
| Season | Player | Assists |
|---|---|---|
| 2017/2018 | James Milner | 9 |
| 2016/2017 | Neymar | 8 |
| 2008/2009 | Xavi | 7 |
| 2012/2013 | Zlatan Ibrahimovic | 7 |
| 2006/2007 | Ryan Giggs | 7 |
| 2010/2011 | Mesut Ozil | 7 |
| 2010/2011 | Andres Iniesta | 6 |
| 2003/2004 | Thierry Henry | 6 |
| 2016/2017 | Ousmane Dembele | 6 |
| 2017/2018 | Roberto Firmino | 6 |
| 2009/2010 | Wesley Sneijder | 6 |
Milner, who retired from England duty in 2016 with 61 caps, has produced a remarkable nine assists in Europe’s elite competition this season.
And with his nine assists, he has broken a record, creating the most goals in a single season in the competition since 2003-04.
Milner wrote his name in the record books after setting up Firmino’s second and Liverpool’s final goal of the game in the 68th minute at Anfield.
Before the night started, he was level on eight assists with Neymar, who worked his magic in the 2016-17 season with Barcelona before joining Paris Saint-Germain for a world-record fee.
Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane scored as Liverpool beat Roma 5-2
Meanwhile, Xavi, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Ryan Giggs and Mesut Ozil have all produced seven assists in a single season in the Champions League.
Milner and his Liverpool team-mates will be confident of sealing their progression to the Champions League final after taking a three-goal advantage into the second-leg next week in Rome.
Salah scored two brilliant goals in the first half, before Mane and Firmino netted in the second period at Anfield to put the hosts 5-0 up.
However, Roma made sure they have left themselves with an outside chance of beating the Reds in the second-leg after Edin Dzeko and Diego Perrotti scored late on.
Neymar produced eight assists for Barcelona in the 2016-17 Champions League
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