13 Players Who Have Played 500 Premier League Games
With James Milner still tearing it up in the Premier League having surpassed 500 games in the league last season, it is about time that we took a look at the esteemed company he keeps in the fabled '500 club'.
Here are the 13 players to have hit the milestone:
13. Sol Campbell - 503
Tottenham fans, look away now.
Sol Campbell is one of the very best centre backs in English football history - thanks in large part to his time at Arsenal.
The centre back ultimately made 503 league appearances, his 500th coming in a 3-1 loss away to West Brom.
12. Rio Ferdinand - 504
At 504, Rio Ferdinand has made one more appearance in the Premier League than Sol Campbell, by one - the decisive game coming against Tottenham at Loftus Road with his final club Queen's Park Rangers.
The west London side were one of five Premier League sides Rio played for, with his spell at Manchester United naturally his most successful.
He won six Premier League titles, two League Cups and a Champions League during his days in red.
11. Steven Gerrard - 504
Tied with Ferdinand on 504, it's current Rangers boss and Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard.
The scouser made all of those appearances in Liverpool red, with his 504th and final one unfortunately coming in an ignominious 6-1 away loss to Stoke City.
Unable to bring his side a Premier League trophy, despite providing 121 goals and 70 assists for his side in the competition, Gerrard had to settle for five domestic cups and two European triumphs.
10. Phil Neville - 505
With just two clubs on his career map, Manchester United and Everton, Phil Neville managed to beat out many of his contemporaries with 505 appearances in the league.
His goals and assists column may be slightly lower than others, with just nine and 12 respectively, but thankfully his 500th game was a home victory against Wigan.
His final appearance? A 2-0 loss at Old Trafford. Fitting.
9. Jamie Carragher - 508
The first one-club man of the list, Jamie Carragher represented Liverpool from 1996 to 2013, with his 508th and final showing coming in a 1-0 win against QPR at Anfield.
Mind you, he got just three goals in those 508 games, but did manage a vaguely impressive seven assists.
8. Mark Schwarzer - 514
The only man born outside of the British Isles to reach the 500 milestone, Schwarzer is also surprisingly just one of two goalkeepers on this vaunted list.
Coming to England in 1996 with Bradford, the Australian went on to enjoy spells with Middlesbrough, Fulham, Chelsea and Leicester - keeping 153 clean sheets.
7. Emile Heskey - 516
Perhaps unfairly derided in the latter days of his career, Heskey was a prodigious Premier League scorer on his day, especially in early spells with Leicester and Liverpool, earning him a final total of 111 goals in the top tier.
The last of those 111 goals came against Blackburn in August 2011. The last of those 516 appearances? A 2-0 loss at Norwich City in May 2012.
6. James Milner - 534
James Milner joined the PL 500 Club in emphatic style, captaining his side to a 4-0 win at Bournemouth. And he hasn't looked like slowing down ever since.
This season - when it ever bloody restarts - he looks set to win the Premier League title with Liverpool. Nice one.
5. Gary Speed - 535
A true Premier League great, Gary Speed sadly passed away in 2011.
After notching 81 goals and two assists over spells at Leeds, Newcastle and Everton, the Welshman made his remarkable 535th and final appearance in the Premier League for Bolton in a 4-1 win against Wigan.
4. David James - 572
Another big leap up in appearances (not unlike that one up there from David), we're really entering the big leagues now. David James, the second and final custodian to make the cut, managed a whopping 572 outings in the Premier League over a 27-year career.
Of course not all of those years were spent in the 'Best League in the World', but it was still enough to snatch fourth on this list. James made his name at Watford and Liverpool, before spells with Villa, West Ham, Manchester City and Fulham.
He recorded 172 shut-outs.
3. Frank Lampard - 609
The top scorer on this list, with 177 goals, and thus also the fourth greatest goalscorer in Premier League history - it is of course Frank Lampard.
The midfielder managed three Premier League trophies, four FA Cups and three League Cups, as well as a Champions League triumph, in an esteemed career. After 13 years at Chelsea, Lampard is also the Blues' greatest ever scorer.
Naturally, being Frank, his 177th goal came on his 609th and final appearance.
2. Ryan Giggs - 632
The second and final one-club man on this list, unless you count a short-lived stay at Manchester City youth which, obviously you shouldn't, but it's still worth mentioning - because, it's funny.
Ryan Giggs, the second Welshman, spent 23 years with Manchester United, picking up a mammoth 13 Premier League titles, as well as...well too many other trophies to name - his cabinet is probably bigger than most people's houses.
He provided 109 goals and 100 assists, the last of which came in his 632nd appearance - a 3-1 win against Hull City at the Theatre of Dreams.
1. Gareth Barry - 653
The only player on this list still to be playing, that is until James Milner enters the fray, Gareth Barry's whopping 653 outings is the Premier League's current record, and it's going to take some beating.
The midfielder, who has played for Aston Villa, Manchester City and Everton, is now plying his trade at West Bromwich Albion,. His 653rd and final appearance came in a home loss to Huddersfield at the Hawthorns, his (aesthetically pleasing) 53rd and final score coming against Manchester United.
He won one league title, and one FA Cup.