Gareth Barry shares his secrets to longevity and how he racked up over 50,000 minutes in Premier League

Gareth Barry has shared his secrets to longevity and how he managed to rack up over 50,000 minutes in Premier League football.

The former Aston Villa and Everton star comfortably holds the record for most minutes played in England's top flight, sitting at 54,434 minutes, just shy of 4,000 more than any other active player in the Premier League.

Speaking exclusively to GB News, Barry shared how he was able to look after his body and feature in so many games.

He said: "I think a lot of my sort of players, older than me and similar age, they sometimes didn't buy into the way that football and sports science was going, but for me, I'd always try everything, and it would help.

TRENDING

Stories

Videos

Your Say

"Yoga was one thing. You got your cryo chambers. Now you've got the hot and cold baths. You got the swimming pool, stretching off.

"I just bought into anything, and it certainly helped me, help me and mentally."

Comparing the difference from how players take care of themselves now to when the former England international played, Barry said: "When I started my career, you'd come in and train for half an hour and then warm up for half an hour, and then pretty much train, and then you'd go home by half 12.

"Now, players are getting in two hours before staying after for two hours, probably being a lot more professional."

LATEST SPORTS NEWS

• Scottie Scheffler hits out at 'absurd' decision in the PGA Championship
• Rory McIlroy makes feelings clear on 'not great' PGA Championship setup
• Gary Neville 'discussed by Labour' to take over Andy Burnham's Manchester mayor role

Barry, who not only holds the most minutes in the Premier League, but also the most starts with 618, 47 more than David James in second place.

The midfielder honed in on when he started to buy into the advancements in sports science and put it into practice.

He told the People's Channel: "I think I first started at the end of my Villa career, so I was sort of mid, mid to late 20s, started it there, and just continued it all the way through the career.

"Sort of things are put on the players from your physios, the sports scientists, saying: 'Give this a try. Try this.' And yoga just stuck with me, and I continued doing it all the way to the end of my career."

Barry noted his position benefited the longevity of his career, adding that his style of play suited him, very rarely getting injured.

He said: "I was ready to go into the game, and then afterwards, you quickly learn what was good for your body to recover.

"You know, recovery is important for you and then your warm-ups and stuff like that. I just think the lads that put the time in and the effort are the ones that generally pick up fewer injuries.

"But yeah, we're all different. It's the easy one for me to say, I wasn't quick enough to pull a hamstring, but your wingers and players like that, they're the explosive players.

"They're gonna pick up the slight muscle injuries. My style of play was certainly suited to longevity in that regard, so I had a little help in not getting injured there."

_Barry was speaking exclusively to the People's Channel thanks to Midnite._Midnite, one of the fastest-growing betting and casino companies in the world, has today proven that it really is BUILT DIFFERENT, by becoming the first betting app to place a bet in space. The bet in question backed England to win the World Cup, and was placed by former England midfielder, Gareth Barry.

Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter