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I developed a mechanism so that whatever mistakes I made, I would bounce straight back. Whatever was happening off the pitch, I could put it to one side and maintain my form. Call it mental resilience or a strong mind, but that is what we mean when we talk about experience in a football team.
When I first made the team I didn't even know there was a national team. So to meit was all new. When I got asked to go on the trip to China I was 16. I said, 'well you know what I have to ask my parents.' So I called home and I am like, 'Mom and Dad can I go to China?' They were like 'sure.'
If you have any setback in your life, like not being in the England squad was for me - any setback, like losing a family member - everyone handles it in different ways. When I first wasn't included I was numb. I'd been the main England striker for years and years. It was really disappointing.
For most players it's hard to accept you've ended your football career and that you have to go out and do something else. But the way it happened to me, so suddenly... I went into depression and had to deal with that, being depressed, something that had never happened to me in my life before.
I can only say what I have lived and experienced. And the majority of people who have been to Makhachkala have come back with different opinions. It's a relaxed city but very lively, like many of the capitals in the world. At first sight, you would never say that there are political problems.
I have now played with both him (Cristiano Ronaldo) and Ronaldinho. And Ronaldo is top in Europe at the moment. Both of them in the same team would be like a bomb. It would be an incredible spectacle for the people. What's more, I am totally convinced the two are able to play in the same side.
I am not so old, but when I started out, we had none of this. We did not have the need to show the things we do and the good life we lead. That is dangerous. Social networks can be very positive because it's a great vehicle to communicate, but perhaps things need to be done in a different way.
I have always seen myself as an athlete. Of course, I made the mistake of unintentionally opening the door to my private life by just a crack. I wouldn't do the same thing again. It has to be accepted that my private life is private, and if that isn't the case, I have to do something about it.
I always had a philosophy which I got from my father. He used to say, 'Listen. God gave to you the gift to play football. This is your gift from God. If you take care of your health, if you are in good shape all the time, with your gift from God no one will stop you, but you must be prepared.'
I don't want to bring my kid to a stadium and sit next to somebody who is shouting racist chants, because it's going to make kids think that it's okay to do it. It's not only affecting players, but it is affecting kids that are growing up now, and are going to be bringing their kids in future.
I'd have to say Thierry Henry. From the ages of ten to 16, watching him in the Premier League was amazing and he scored all different types of goals - free-kicks, volleys, left foot, right foot. He was entertaining. He's probably the best centre-forward, I think, to play in the Premier League.
All snowmen look to the sky, knowing their death will be delivered by the horizon. Before dawn, their life becomes the darkest. The moment before the sun burns all. The Snowmen go mental. Kill or be killed. I only just escaped the violent puddles, the sticks and stones. The broken carrot noses.
I have no problem living in Liverpool, but I think my wife and daughters deserve to enjoy every day to the full and live their lives - but they have to be at home all day. My wife doesn't speak a word of English, so she depends 100% on me. I live here with them. That's my world, that's my life.
I have always wanted to fight no matter what position I am in, and whether that is Liverpool or England, I need to do more, and I need to do better because you have younger players, or players get signed for the club who push you and want to take your place, and you have to be better than them.
It's really obvious that we have very serious inequality in this country across many different spectrums. Yes, we can talk about the form of protest or the way it's done or this or that. But it's still not really the conversation that I think we desperately need to have more of in this country.
I think the greatest Real Madrid player of all time is Cristiano Ronaldo followed by Ferenc Puskas. Ronaldo equalled Puskas’ great record of 242 goals in fewer games. He was also the fastest Real Madrid player to score 100 goals and holds the record for most goals scored for Madrid in a season.
Suarez did fit in the style of the team quickly. I think his arrival was practically perfect. And us 3 fit in a fantastic way. We used to understand each other even without having so much of playing time together. I think we were missing the icing on the cake, and it was [ Luis Alberto] Suarez.
I will be the one lifting that trophy, not Paolo Maldini. Imagine me hoisting the trophy. It is an image I have in my mind and I want to make it a reality. We have world-class players and, believe me, they are in the mood to do it. The atmosphere around the club at the moment is just top-class.
The writing is therapeutic for me, it's an introverted process, I'm really inside my head. It's a really obsessive process. The live show, though, is the opposite. It's an extroverted process. It pushes me to connect with people, and so it pulls me out of my head and just pulls me out of myself.
I think that every day, more and more people are conscious of what Barca is, that Barca is a global brand, and you can go anywhere in the world and see a child wearing a Barca shirt, and that means a lot: not just that people like Barca but that they also like the colours and even buy the shirt.
What puts you in a different level is if you win the Premier League, and you're capable of challenging every season for the Premier League, and if you play Champions League, and you really believe, and you're a real contender one day to win the Champions League. That's my objective in Tottenham.
Focus on what you know you can do. Know what you're capable of on any given day, and what you can count on. Do the simple things well, and then use the confidence to build up the rest of your game. Learn to differentiate between what is truly important and what can be dealt with at another time.
Problems are gifts from heaven to help every one of us to grow but for those who are to grow the most, heaven bestows rejection. Today is not bad just because yesterday seemed better. All the keys to joy can be reduced to these two. Laugh but at no one's expense and love but without expectation.
Looking back at my matches since 2002, there is one main criterion for me which marks a club which is successful in the long-term: big players, who have grown with their clubs, whose names are tied to the success and who have a 100 per cent identification with the team, the club and its history.
In France, sometimes, you have some players or coaches say, 'If we go there, and we come back with one point, it's okay.' Here? No chance of this! Everybody wants to win. I think every team is playing to win matches, so the game is hard and fast, intensive. I really like the Bundesliga for that.
Ander is a fantastic young player, with great energy and creativity. We believe him to be one of the brightest young prospects in Spain and I am certain he will be a big hit with the United fans. I’m delighted he has made the decision to come to Manchester and play his part in the club’s future.
The mind unlearned in reverence, says Bonaventure (1221-1274), is in danger of becoming so captivated by the spectacle of beings as to be altogether forgetful of being in itself; and our mechanistic approach to the world is nothing but ontological obliviousness translated into a living tradition.
When I can talk about my teammates who help make me a better player, or even the coach who gave me the self-confidence to continue being who I am, these are fundamental people who have had an influence throughout my life and my professional career, and I'm very thankful to them, and they know it.
The fans of Borussia Dortmund are truly amazing. It is hard to describe what you feel when you play in front of them, the atmosphere they create not only on the yellow wall with its 25000-something fans jumping up and down a full 90-plus minutes of every game, no matter the score or the opponent.
Baseball and American football and hockey are all ahead because they have a history. The MLS is kind of new. So hopefully, in time, and with players coming and trying to develop the game, and the U.S. team also doing well - at the last World Cup, they finished above England and created some buzz.
Sometimes it's even hard to tell the difference between a tic and a compulsion. But while tics stem from an urge in a specific part of the body - either completely unconsciously or through a premonitory sensation that's satisfied only by the tic - OCD bubbles up as conscious thoughts in the mind.
I just wanted to defend football, which is not always easy to do. Those of us who have been in the sport so many years now realise we must protect it and look after it. I was speaking about football, what it means. It is our profession, it has been our lives, and we must take care of it a little.
It is about time that the religious and environmental faithful joined forces. No one wins when divisive politics pits the right to human life against the sanctity of biodiversity, or family values against ecosystem services. There are infinite compatible reasons to love, cherish and steward Earth.
As a player, you get to the stage where you realise that you are not 25 anymore - and can't play the way you used to. The intelligent players adapt - and Steven Gerrard has the ability to do that. He is an excellent passer of the ball, possesses an intelligent football brain, and has great vision.
When I'm out for a walk or out shopping, then I'll probably have 20 different conversations a day with people about Blackburn Rovers. You can't really escape from it. I am still really proud to come from Blackburn. It is a place I still hold very dear to my heart, which is why I want to stay here.
When I was younger, I had some close friends who always loved European football, and Real Madrid at that time were the dominant force. I remember family holidays when we used to go to Spain, and we'd bring back replica shirts of Real Madrid and pretend to be the players when we played in the park.
We have to change the way we coach kids in the long-term so that by the time they hit 16, they are better than the Spanish, French, and German players. That is the big challenge, but the No. 1 criteria for me has always been how you are technically judged, from the age of eight, not size or power.
Every player thinks he's Maradona when he joins a big club. That happens to all of us, but then you start to notice it in the younger players. You see kids who think they're rock stars, wearing extravagant clothes and driving fancy cars... and sometimes you have to take them aside and have a word.
When we played at Celtic Park for Bayern in the Champions League it was unbelievable and I think all our players said the same thing afterwards. The atmosphere was just totally unique. I’ve played in lots of big games and stadiums but I’ve never witnessed fans making that much noise in 90 minutes.
There is a lot of talent and a lot of good things happening and coming from Molenbeek, but unfortunately, it has had to deal with a very, very long time of being ignored, really, and it was very easy, even in the neighbourhood where I grew up, to just fall off the grid, and nobody would notice it.
No I or individual is better than the team. I've scored no goals just on my own. Every goal I've ever scored has been because of someone else on my team, their excellence, their bravery. And I'm kind of the end product of a collection of a really good vibe, and feeling, and creativity on the field.
Paul Scholes has been the best England midfield player for 30-odd years. You'd probably have to go back to Bobby Charlton to find someone who could do as much as Scholes. When the ball arrives at his feet he could tell you where every player on that pitch is at that moment. His awareness is superb.
Money is not a motivating factor. Money doesn't thrill me or make me play better because there are benefits to being wealthy. I'm just happy with a ball at my feet. My motivation comes from playing the game I love. If I wasn't paid to be a professional footballer I would willingly play for nothing.
I don't set myself targets. Last season I scored hat-trick against Wolfsburg and three days later, that was forgotten, you're about to be judged again. When you've done well, you don't want another game, you just want to feel great. When you've done badly, you can't wait for another chance to come.
Scholesy is one of my favourite players of all time. He was a great professional who had everything and I used to love playing with him. You could give him the ball in any position, he would take one touch and you would know exactly what the next move would be. [ . . . ] He was magical, pure class.
I have been in football a long time, and Wayne Rooney has been in football a long time. He would regard me as someone who is very false if I ever said to him, 'Your place is guaranteed.' He would not expect it, and I would be very upset anyway if anyone asked me to give them a guarantee of a place.
Why don't you think we should dream of an African team winning the World Cup for the first time? People never allow this thought to cross their minds, and it is shameful. When you try to even say it, people look at you as if you're joking, but they forget that dreaming is the first step to success.
When you spend a lot of money on one player, you want him to prove himself, but the way football works, one day you can be good, the next you can be bad, and the next after that, you can be very bad. I have come to Manchester City to work very hard and to help my friends make Manchester City great.
Football players have always got a problem, some pain, and in some games, I have had small problems with my knee or some pain, and I played anyway, but people don't know if I have a problem or not. People just know if you score a goal or if you play badly, but they never know if you are well or not.
My kids are one, three, five and eight, and we are all horsey. The kids have got their ponies and can ride. Our foundation mare is special to our hearts. She was one of my first ever horses. She was my first ever winner at Chester, which is also special, and she's just the apple of our eyes, really.