James Milner has officially signed for Brighton on a free transfer, having left Liverpool this summer following a decorated eight-year spell.
One of four senior players released by Liverpool at the end of the season, Milner has become the second to find a new club.
The veteran midfielder has signed an initial one-year contract with Brighton which will see him formally join the south-coast club on July 1, when his terms at Anfield expire.
Brighton also hold an option to extend the deal by a further year.
He becomes the second former Liverpool player in Roberto De Zerbi’s squad, and will provide welcome knowhow alongside Adam Lallana.
Having turned 37 in January, Milner made 43 appearances in his final campaign on Merseyside, and could take up a more focal role at the AMEX.
Milner joins Brighton as they prepare for life without Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo, the former heading the other way to Liverpool.
The Seagulls will be his seventh club in a senior career that began in 2002, with spells at Leeds, Swindon (loan), Newcastle, Aston Villa and Man City before he joined the Reds.
His stay at Liverpool was the longest at eight years, and Jurgen Klopp had hoped to extend that for another 12 months before those in the club’s hierarchy intervened.
Brighton will enter the Europa League for the first time in their history next season, and Milner’s experience in Europe could be invaluable.
The assumption is that he will be involved as a regular starter, and he will be joined as a new signing by Mahmoud Dahoud, another free agent following the expiry of his contract at Dortmund.
Good luck, Milly!
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