Milligan's recent move to Al Ahli, halfway through Melbourne Victory's season, raised a few eyebrows among A-League fans. 

Milligan has been one of the A-League's finest footballers for eight of the last 12 years, yet his devastating blow to Victory's title hopes copped some criticism. 

"I found out until later that the deal had been around for quite a while but no one had brought it to me," Milligan told reporters in Oslo.

"When it did come about I spoke to Kevin Muscat but the offer wasn't suitable for everybody so I left it. It was out of my hands.

"Something else then came through on the Saturday night and the club agreed to terms. By Monday morning I was off. That's football."

Rather than just financially-motivated, however, Milligan says the transfer was about eliciting his full potential. A potential that in his early days saw him linked with the likes of Arsenal and FC Porto, but eventually came to no avail. 

"There is that (the money), but it's a good league as well," he said.

"I am at a very big club fighting for title. We are leading our (Asian) Champions League group, (and we're) in the semi-final of the cup.

"My first game (Jeddah Derby) was played in front of 67,000.

"It's a very high standard. The last two weeks we've played two teams coming second bottom and bottom and it was a battle.

"Across the board the standard is high and there are things you just don't get in Australia.

"I have played 11 games in seven weeks. Leading into a World Cup, that is what I need to be doing."

Following Milligan's latest career disappointment - a cancelled move to England after Australia's world ranking slipped below the cut-off point for a work visa - it's easy to sympathise with the 32-year-old's determination.

2018 will be Milligan's last chance to prove his worth, both at domestic and international level, on the highest stage possible.

While it's arguable that Saudi Arabia is still a tier below where some Socceroos fans want to see him, for someone with so much talent and versatility, one of Asia's biggest clubs finally provides some vindication. 

"I've made a point to prove to myself, that despite all of these obstacles I have kept my head down, worked hard to be a part of this set-up," he said.

"I don't expect anything from anybody. I just want to look back after I retire and say with the ability I had, I got absolutely everything out of it."