As James Milner was mobbed by his Leeds team-mates after becoming the youngest goalscorer in Premier League history it seemed English football would be dazzled by the teenager winger for years to come. Milner was just 16 when he smashed home a Jason Wilcox cross after coming on as a substitute in Leeds' 2-1 win at Sunderland on Boxing Day 2002.
The strike meant Milner eclipsed Wayne Rooney as the youngest name on a top-flight scoresheet. It was the last time he would take the spotlight from his contemporary, until now as Milner prepares to make his England debut in Wednesday's friendly against Spain in Seville.
Milner and Rooney were seen as the future of English football when they burst onto the scene in 2002. But, while Rooney went onto make his full England debut less than three months after Milner's record breaking goal, Milner himself suffered from being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Leeds were at the tail-end of their financially ruinous attempt to chase the European dream and Milner was sold to Newcastle for three million pounds in 2004 after the club were relegated.
Milner, a boyhood Leeds fan, was unhappy to leave and must have cast envious glances at Rooney, who was completing a 30 million pounds move to Manchester United after starring for England at Euro 2004.
The winger's experience at Newcastle was just as chaotic as his time with Leeds and he struggled to cope with the constant turmoil off the pitch at St James' Park. Eventually Aston Villa manager Martin O'Neill came calling before the start of this season to offer him a return to the club where he had a successful loan spell in 2005.
Milner jumped at the chance and has flourished in the Premier League's most upwardly mobile team. Such has been his improvement in the last year that Fabio Capello recently described Milner as the future of English football. Now Capello has backed up those words by calling Milner into his squad for England's trip to Spain.
Seven years after that dramatic introduction at Sunderland, Milner is finally the centre of attention again and, speaking at England's team hotel ahead of the friendly, it was no surprise to hear him admit this moment has been a long time coming.
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