Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
I think there's always pressure at Arsenal to win trophies - it's nothing new - and to us, as players, we know what we are capable of doing.
You have to be on top of your game, train hard every day, and try to convince the boss throughout the week that he should put you in the team.
When I was in school with my friends and stuff, you always used to put yourself in the situation of footballers of the time and pretend to be them.
Hopefully I can be one of the best midfielders in the world. That's what drives me on: to try and achieve that and to try and go on and win many things.
Every time I step on the pitch, I feel proud to play for my club and my country, so to get to show this pride through my boots has meant a great deal to me.
When Bale first started at Tottenham, they were struggling to win whenever he played at left-back, but it is unbelievable how quickly things can change in football.
Being a midfielder, I need to get up and down, whether it's to get back and defend or get away from my opposite number. Extra effort in training makes all the difference.
I live for football, and my real passion is just to go out there and express myself and show everybody what I'm capable of doing. It's what I've always known since I was a kid.
When you're wide, you're taught to try and get in at the far post so the ball doesn't go straight across, but from that central position, you can use your instinct where to go.
On away trips, I'll listen to my iPod sometimes or watch some TV, see what's on of a Friday or Saturday night - I'll usually save the TV box sets until I'm at home with the wife.
I want to be the complete midfielder, someone who can defend and attack. Steven Gerrard is someone who's done that very well over the years, and he is someone I am trying to emulate.
I started off playing rugby league as well as union. I switched between fly-half and wing, but I preferred to play fly-half. I liked to be at the heart of everything. I liked to be involved.
I think a top-class midfielder needs to be able to tackle, get up and down the pitch, pass, create opportunities, and score goals. That's why I try to do everything; that's what I judge my game on.
It's a massive difference when you play in front of full stadiums; you can sense the buzz around the players, and it helps us get that extra one or two per cent that may be the difference in games.
It's nice to have it recognised that I'm doing well and to have people saying good things about me, but I try not to take too much interest. I just try to focus on my own game and what I need to do to improve.
I get the normal stats, like tackles and pass completion and high-intensity runs. I get them after every game to see how similar they are to every game and to make sure I'm hitting the targets - or not too far away from them.
I've always been able to get into the box, but in the past, I'd been very rash in my finishing; I wasn't clear with what I was doing in the final third. When it came to shooting, I was very rushed. I wasn't hitting the ball cleanly.
I like to be involved as much as I can in the game, and in the middle, you're definitely the heartbeat of the team. When you're on the right, you can go minutes without seeing the ball, and that's a long time when you're out on the pitch.
You need to stay in that one position to get consistency that way. Different things are going through your mind when you are playing out right to when you are playing through the middle, so you can't get through that routine of where you want to play.
It's quite strange looking down the list of players who've won the young player award in the past and then thinking I'm in there too now. There's some great names like Ryan Giggs, Craig Bellamy - and I can't miss out Chris Gunter - and it's a big boost to be included.
As a midfielder, you have to have vision. If you see an opening that might create an opportunity, you have to believe in yourself and go for it; a 40-yard pass or an eye-of-the-needle ball. You have to feel you are going to make it. That's the way I play. I have a picture in my mind, and I go for it.