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He’s great. I love him. This is going to be a difficult one to do though because Milner is one of the trickiest ones to evaluate. Virtually every performance from him is the same. There are no wild fluctuations in form, no highs or lows, he’s just basically the same every time he steps onto the field. He always makes the right decisions, he crosses well, he passes well, he works his socks off, he’s got great technique and he’s a leader and an example to everyone in the squad. He’s been great in midfield and when he’s needed to play full back he’s been great there too. He's Big Games James, the man you can count on when the pressure is at's highest. Just look at how many pressure penalties he's converted. He's the epitome of Klopp's 'Mentality Monsters'. Klopp even revealed that Milner gives a team talk before every game, whether he’s playing or not. The importance of Milner to this squad is probably much greater than anyone outside of the dressing room realises. In a group where most are relatively young and prior to this season hadn’t tasted much success, Milner has been there and done it all. His experience and professionalism raises the level of everyone else. I was happiest for Hendo that we won something. I was made up for Klopp as well, but Milner is right up there too. I was desperate for him to win something with us. He's got medals and he's had a great career, but for his Anfield legacy he needed to win something. To me, Milner has been a great Liverpool player. But without a major trophy it's just not the same. He'd have been remembered fondly, but now he'll be remembered as a club legend. He deserves that for being such a fantastic pro and great team-mate. Not to mention being a terrific player. I’ve said this before but it’s worth repeating. You could stick Milner in a time machine and transport him back to any era and put him in any of our great teams of the past, and he’d fit right in. Not only would be a hit on the pitch, but he’d be accepted into any dressing room as he’s just an old school pro. He's the consummate football player. A modern day Ian Callaghan. The Barcelona game was the perfect example of how valuable Milner is to this team. First half in midfield, absolutely sensational. Second half at left back, even better. Messi called him a donkey when they clashed at the Nou Camp. The ironic thing is, if Messi had a few like James Milner around him in that Barca team then they wouldn’t have been so easily turned over at Anfield (and by Roma last year). Great players need a James Milner or two around them, especially away from home when the going gets tough. Rating 8 /10 Terrific season. He was really good last year, but he was even better this time around. And now he's a European Champion. Best Moment: I’ve got three. Dumping Neymar on his arse in the first few minutes at Anfield. Dumping Messi on his arse in the Nou Camp. And breaking down in tears at full time after we beat Barca. You can also throw in any time he had to take a pen too. Balls of steel. Worst Moment: I suppose being called a donkey by Messi, although knowing Milner he probably buzzed off that and wears it as a badge of honour. Not taking the chance he had in the final was probably the lowest in my eyes as I'd have loved nothing more than for him to score a decisive goal in a final for us. He's probably not arsed though because we won. The Future: Give him a new contract. He’s as good as he’s ever been, arguably even better. He’s not slowing down and has a couple more years left in him if he’s not starting every week (which he won’t be because Klopp rotates the midfield lads constantly).

A year ago I saw Sadio Mané as very much the third man in the front three. He was boss but if another brilliant forward had dropped into our laps, Sadio would have been the obvious one to make way. It wasn’t a vote against him, it was a vote for Mo (44 goals) and Bobby (loads of goals, loads of assists and also the glue that held it all together). Now? Different story. Mané was our best forward this year. Statistically it was still Salah, but my eyes tell me that Mané was better despite what their respective seasons might look like on a spreadsheet. Why was Mané better? He was more consistent, he had fewer bad games and his goals often seemed to be more crucial. There was a spell when Salah wasn’t scoring and it was Mané who picked up the slack and kept us going. He shared the Golden Boot with Salah and Aubamayeng but Mané was the only one who didn’t take pens, so he’s the real winner for me. He started the season brilliantly, he ended it brilliantly and although he had a couple of dry spells he never really let those standards drop much in between. This was the Mané I expected to see LAST season, but as well as he did in 17/18 he was streaky and had some poor runs of form. This year he just seemed to have a swagger about him. Klopp says it’s because he’s finally realised just how good he is. Maybe last year when Mo was tearing it up, Sadio contented himself with a supporting role, like the Manic Street Preachers to Bon Jovi at Anfield last week. Now Mané isn’t a support act for anyone. He’s not the Manics, he’s the fucking Proclaimers. A headline act. As I say though, this is what I expected from him. In his first season with us I thought he was our Player of the Season, even though Coutinho got it. You’d see things from Sadio that would make you think he could be anything he wants to be. He never seems to get tired, he’s one of the quickest I’ve seen over a few yards (teenage Michael Owen is the only one who rivals him) and you can’t kick him out of a game as he just gets up and gets on with it. He didn’t always put it together consistently but there was world class talent there right from day one. The goal he scored at the Emirates on his debut is the one that always sticks with me. It was incredible. He’s so explosive and can do it with either foot or his head. He did it in flashes in his first two seasons, but this season he was doing it on a weekly basis, especially after the turn of the year. I read recently that he scored seven headers this season as well. Seven headers!! He’s only five foot seven or something. Doesn’t matter though, because not only can he jump, but he’s as good as there is at finding space in between defenders. He started this campaign with a double against West Ham on the opening day, and had four goals in his first four games. Then he went seven without scoring. Three in his next two was followed by an eight game drought but after that he was on fire. It felt like he scored every week after the turn of the year. I know he didn’t, it just felt like he did. His performances were quality too, so it wasn’t just the goals. So often this season I felt like the front three just weren’t at the same level they were a year ago, but that was unfair on Sadio because most of the time he was performing as well as or even better than last year. He had his off days, and the goalless draw away at United was horrendous from an attacking point of view (the entire team were garbage). Pitiful stuff that. For the most part though, Sadio had his A game with him most weeks. The beauty of it is that you can tell he hasn’t peaked yet, there’s still another level he can get to. I read something the other day from Trent, where he said that Mané is the player he least likes to face in training because he struggles to handle him. Rio Ferdinand also said recently that as great as our front three are, Mané is the one he would least like to play against because he’s relentless, quick, strong, can use both feet and he’s unpredictable. I think he’s still very much under-rated though. The wider footballing world sees Salah as the main man because of his 44 goals last season and his much higher profile. Mo doesn’t shy away from attention or the limelight but Sadio doesn’t seem to want any part of that. He’s quiet, shy even. The Messi to Mo’s Ronaldo. That probably seems like a dig at Salah but it’s not intended to be. I’m just trying to highlight the difference in the pair of them and explain why Mané is maybe not getting the recognition he probably should. Take that Barca game for example. Mo and Bobby were both missing but we won 4-0 anyway. Sadio didn’t score and was hardly talked about afterwards, but he was fucking brilliant that night. He ran Barca ragged. He may not have put the ball in the net himself, but he did as much as anyone to cause the overall sense of panic in the Barca backline. They were terrified of him and he unsettled them right from the start. He didn’t score though so it almost went under the radar. In the final he was our best forward too, even though he was nowhere near his best. Even when he's not having the influence you want him to he's always a threat and his capacity to just pick the ball up and run fifty yards with it must make him a right bastard to have to play against. He has two or three of those every game. So in summary, he’s gone from being the third man to being at the very least on an equal footing with Bobby and Mo. A great season and I can’t wait to see what he does next year. Rating 9 /10 Probably half a dozen more goals short of a perfect ten, but a hell of an effort. Best Moment: The back heel goal against Watford was a cracker, and I was tempted to go with him deliberately chipping the ball at Sissoko’s arm in the final. But that effort away at Bayern was just an iconic goal in the European history of the club. Just wonderful technique, I could watch it over and over. And I have. Worst Moment: He missed about five sitters against Napoli at home and had Alisson not saved the day then Sadio would have been the villain of the peace. But his worst moment of the season is definitely this… The Future? He’s no longer the third man, he’s on an equal footing with the other two and might actually be on his way to becoming number one if he can build on this year.