Gareth Barry may certainly not have been the most prolific player or have the smoothest moves on the pitch but he more than made up for it in terms of work ethic and dedication to his craft. He kept his head down and put in the shift.
Now that he has finally retired from the game after what seems like almost an eternity let us take a look at what makes this veteran such a tremendous and inspirational figure.
Gareth Barry graced the pitch with character and whilst not many people may remember him, he has most certainly earned the right to have a special place in the hearts of the premier league fans. Gareth Barry started his journey at a very young age with an up and coming Aston villa.
He finally went on to play 653 games in the premier league with 53 goals and 51 assists. He holds the record for the most games played in the premier league and has finally decided to hang up his boots at the age of 39.
Gareth Barry and James Milner have a very similar style of play where they are most effectively used to put in those tackles and break up the opposition attack. Gareth barry mostly functioned as a defensive midfielder but also played as a central midfielder on many occasions. He played for a range of clubs like West Brom, Everton, Manchester City and Aston Villa. He had two spells each at Everton and Manchester City.
He may have only won 1 premier league title and 1 FA Cup throughout his career which nearly spanned two decades, but whenever he came onto the pitch, he gave it all for the team. A true leader and a man of impeccable character.
He was a proper old school industrious midfielder who loved to get physical and wrestle around the park for the ball. He did the dirty work in the background so that the team could benefit from it. He also played 53 games for England in which he scored 3 goals.
He is the epitome of what goes into making a proper defensive midfielder. While people may argue that there have been many who were much better, there certainly hasn’t been anyone who could maintain that kind of a carrier for such a long time.
Let us finally take out some time and say goodbye to the legend who has given close to half of his life to this beautiful game, all the time in the background without asking for too much or being involved in too many controversies.
