The Week in Quotes - WORLD FOOTBALL
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| FIFA.com |
"I saw Pele racing to the edge of the box. I had a quick look before their winger Jairzinho crossed the ball - Pele had got in front of Alan Mullery. Jairzinho centered the ball, but I could not come out for the cross. I knew from the penalty spot it would have to be a fantastic header to beat me. But the ground was hard, so I thought I should get off my line, and as I dived, I had to anticipate how high it was going to bounce. I got a hand to it, the ball actually hit the top of my hand and looked as though it was going into the top of the net. As I hit the floor, I saw that the ball had missed the goal. At first, I thought 'you lucky so and so', but then I realised it has been a bit special. I've met Pele many times since and we often have a chat about it. He thought he'd scored."
England's FIFA World Cup™-winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks speaks with BBC Radio 5 Live's Sportsweek about his famous save against Pele in 1970, as he turns 80 years old
"[I turned down Real Madrid] because PSG is the team of my city. [Joining Real] would have been like a Real Madrid-supporting kid from Madrid having the chance to play for his team and deciding to go somewhere else, to another country. I wanted to play for PSG and I am very happy right now about how things are going. There were a lot of rumours about the transfers and it's true that we spoke, but I think that's now in the past for me and for Real Madrid. I now play for PSG and I will defend these colours 100 per cent."
Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe reveals why he chose PSG over Real Madrid this summer in an interview with Marca
"We know how difficult it is to win a championship [World Cup], but Brazil are prepared. I have faith that Brazil will reach the final because, aside from being a great team, they are on the correct path. You see a squad where there are no complaints such as: 'That was unfair, the other player was supposed to play, etc'. In previous World Cups, you used to see these kinds of things. You don't see this in Tite's squad because the staff are very well prepared, they are involved, they go to lots of matches, they watch the players, they value the Brazil-based players and this motivates competition. I'm happy with what's going on concerning the Brazil national team. The draw Brazil had...everybody who goes to a World Cup must know that there's no easy group. Obviously, Brazil are at a higher level in comparison to Switzerland, Serbia, and Costa Rica. But Brazil still have to pay attention, be serious above all things, and respectful so that they can beat these opponents."
Former Brazil great Zico gives his thoughts on the current national team under the management of coach Tite
"Before I was here, I played in a 0-0 draw in the derby between Dortmund and Schalke. I cleared a shot off the line and that will stay in my memory. Also, 2017 was the year I got my first dog, who I have at home with me now. I’ve got a ridgeback and have had him for five months now. It’s a lot of fun with him. He’s called Vuk, which means Wolf in Bosnian. I think a wolf fits to me!"
Arsenal left-back Sead Kolasinac speaks with the club's official website arsenal.com about his highlights in 2017, on and off the pitch
"We play such a good brand of footy that Australians love to follow and support. The Matildas are household names now and you see not only young girls, but young boys wearing Matildas jerseys – everyone wants to jump on board and be a Matildas fan. I think we connect with all different audiences, from young to old, male to female, which is very unusual in sport."
Australia forward Samantha Kerr reflects on her breakout year with the Matildas, speaking in an interview with The Guardian
"Football has deeply changed between my time and now. I prefer the romantic football of before, now it is all about business. There are players like Ronaldo and Neymar, but Neymar is an example of this big price, it is too much to pay €250m for a player. This goes beyond reality. But Messi is number one, just don't tell Cristiano!"
Roma legend Francesco Totti speaks at the Dubai International Sports Conference
"I remember that he [Jorge Mendes] talked also about Juventus, and I was happy because they are an extraordinary club. He also talked about Real Madrid, Manchester United, and many others. But the club that offered me the best conditions were United."
Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo speaks with Juventus legend Alessandro Del Piero, after winning Player of the Year at the Globe Soccer Awards, about why he chose to play for Manchester United earlier in his career
"I’ve always felt education is very important and this was instilled into me by my late mother from an early age. It felt like a fitting tribute to my mother to pursue my academic career by studying an MBA. Football is more than a sport. It impacts social issues and is big business. I was able to focus my research on the football industry and how clubs can benefit from home advantage."
Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany speaks after graduating from Alliance Manchester Business School with a Master's degree in Business Administration (MBA), in an interview on the school's official website
"My team-mates gave me a nice surprise with these shinpads. But what's important is that we won, while suffering. This victory is really worth a lot; Inter lost, so it's worth double. It was a hard victory, we used a lot of mental energy to come back and we got the win."
Napoli midfielder Marek Hamsik speaks after becoming the Serie A club's all-time leading goalscorer (116)
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Borussia Dortmund and Japan midfielder Shinji Kagawa trains with the adidas Telstar 18 ahead of next summer's FIFA World Cup™ by putting his skills to the test against a young fan