Mini Bio #4: Gareth Barry

Gareth Barry ended his career with 653 Premier League appearances to his name. A record-breaking feat that surpassed Ryan Giggs's 632. An imposing record. He overtook Ryan Giggs who held the almost impossible-to-beat number.

Barry has played for four clubs. Aston Villa, Manchester City, Everton, and West Brom.

He was capped for England 53 times, an impressive figure considering the competition he had to put up with during England's golden generation. 

Here is a concise and chronological account of his club career. 

Aston Villa

1998-2009

A southerner, Barry started his youth career at Brighton & Hove Albion. Villa picked him up at 16 and would have been an apprentice at the Midlands club. 

He was inaugurated to the senior side in 1998.

He made two appearances for them at the end of the 1997-98 season. The following season Barry had become a regular and made 32 league appearances. He could play as a wide midfielder as well as being adept in the middle of the pitch. 

He was well known for his ball-playing skills and for committing himself to the team ethos. His work rate, composure, first touch, and decision-making were so highly rated that his consistency made him the record-breaker for premier league appearances. 

He didn't quite have the panache of a no.10 attacking playmaker so was more suited to the no.8 role. When comparing him to other central midfielders that England was blessed with,  like Gerrard and Lampard, he didn't possess these goal-scoring skills that meant he could strike the ball from 30 yards out.  His overall ability was slightly short of other midfielders like Scholes and Michael Carrick but he did have world-class playmaking abilities deeper in midfield. 

In all competitions, Barry played for Villa on 441 occasions, scoring 52 goals. During his time at Villa, the club was of higher standing than today, consistently finishing at the top half of the Premier League table and even qualifying for European football on some occasions. 

Man City

2009-2014 (Loaned out 2013-2014)

Barry had wanted a new challenge and had Champions League experience at the top of his wishes. Manchester City was recently brought by super-rich owners and a new-look squad was being built. 

Barry had been a consistent performer for the Citizens and wasn't just a signing for the short-term whilst they build their squad with stronger world-class players, Barry would be a mainstay for the next four seasons.

In all competitions, he made 175 appearances for City and scored 8 goals. 

Barry had plenty of game time and never played any less than 30 league appearances during a league season whilst at Man City.

His decision to leave City for the 2013-14 season to go on loan to Everton where he would eventually sign permanently was a decision that he recalls as his only regret in his career. 

With the £30M signing of Fernandinho from Shakhtar Donestk in the summer of 2013 Barry had found himself short on minutes in the pre-season build-up. His agent was also informed by new manager Pellegrini that his regular playing expectations were no longer viable. 

Everton

2014-2018 (Loaned in 2013-2014)

Considering Everton has never been relegated from the Premier League, one may say they are quite the team! Their visions and expectations however were not as nearly as ambitious as the Manchester club he had previously played for. European football was a target whereas Man City were wanting to rule Europe by winning the Champions League. 

For 11 consecutive seasons, Gareth Barry had made at least 30 premier league appearances. The season before joining Everton on loan he had achieved this for a total of 14 league campaigns. From the 2005-06 season to 2008-09 he had only missed out on 6 matches overall. His incredibly rare occurrences of injuries had meant that Barry would play well into his late 30s and do so at a good standard. 

When he joined Everton in 2013 he was 32 years of age, a standard age where footballers begin to decline. During his four seasons at the Merseyside outfit, he still went on to play at least 30 games in each league season. He played 155 games for the Blues in all competitions and hit the net 5 times. 

He made his 600th league appearance at the club where he became the third player in Premier League history to do so. Giggs and Lampard are the only ones to have done it before him. 

Barry surpassed Giggs' record at his next club. 

West Bromwich Albion

2017-2020

36-year-old Barry had been purchased by Tony Pulis who was very keen to bring in the 'brilliant' midfielder. 

After being relegated in his first season, he carried on playing for the club where he would play in the second tier for the first time in his career. 

 
Barry had suffered an injury in the build-up of the 2019-20 season and was subsequently released before the season had started. Still remaining in the Championship, Barry was re-signed in November after recovering. He was part of the squad until the end of that season but only managed to feature in 3 league games. 

His playing career had come to an end in 2020. 

Career Achievements

Aston Villa

• UEFA Intertoto Cup: 2001^[10]

Manchester City

• Premier League: 2011–12^[100]
• FA Cup: 2010–11;^[27] runner-up 2012–13

Individual

• Everton Player of the Season: 2015–16^[101]
• Everton Players' Player of the Season: 2015–16^[101]