Jordan Henderson has named Liverpool teammate James Milner as the most trusted penalty taker in football.
Speaking to Joe Cole for BT Sport, Henderson was asked who he would bet his life on to score from 12 yards.
“Milly,” replied the Liverpool captain, pretty much instantly. “The main man,” replied Cole, as the two chuckled together. “Definitely, he’d look after you,” added the former Liverpool winger.
Don’t let Mohamed Salah see this, whatever you do, Hendo!
Liverpool’s penalty king
Milner does indeed have a pretty spectacular penalty record for Liverpool. Overall, the 36-year-old has taken 21 spot-kicks for the Reds, scoring 19.
That amounts to a success rate of almost 94%. He may not Liverpool’s allocated taker anymore, but by any rate, Milner is up there with the very best.
Interestingly, the veteran was never really considered a top penalty taker until he joined Liverpool, though.
It was only during his time at Aston Villa where he become tentatively known as a reliable man from the spot. Milner scored eight from ten of his kicks for Villa, but was never the team’s designated pick.
After leaving Villa, Milner joined Manchester City. But the Yorkshireman only ever took one penalty for City. Ironically enough, that came against Liverpool, and against Pepe Reina in a 3-0 loss for the Reds in January 2012.
After that, almost four years passed until he stepped up again. By that time, Milner was playing in Liverpool red.
After burying his first effort against Bordeaux, the £150k-a-week man went on to score his next nine in a row. He then bizarrely missed two on the bounce in 2017, before delivering another nine in a row.
With Salah taking over penalty duties, Milner hasn’t taken responsibility from the spot for Liverpool since Boxing Day 2019. But having shown nerves of steel in two cup final shootouts last season, he’s certainly still got it. We think you’re in safe hands then, Hendo!
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