"There were many times when I was very close to signing with Real Madrid, and then once more with Napoli in Italy. It’s not a regret. I was at Santos, and at the time they were a powerhouse." *Pele *revealed he was close to joining Spanish giants Real Madrid and Italian side Napoli during his playing career

**

“I feel very happy for friends and family that have stuck by me in this time. There was a lot of messages and phone calls and everyone’s just happy and proud obviously because of my injury and being out for so long. They’re just excited and happy. They know it’s been a tough time over the 15, 16 months when you’re out injured and nothing’s really happening so it’s nice for them as well. It was a dream debut at the time but I was brought back down to earth quickly when I rang my daughter, who was watching it on telly. I said, ‘did you watch the game?’ and she said, ‘I did but why did you dive the wrong way for one of the penalties?’" Hibernian goalkeeper Conrad Logan** made his club debut and returned to action after 16 months out due to injury and saved two penalties against Dundee United to help Hibs advance to the Scottish Cup final

“With my new barnet (hair style), I thought I was a bit like Pirlo." *Hibernian’s Jason Cummings blamed his haircut for his panenka penalty miss in the Scottish Cup semi-final against Dundee United (he then went on to score the winning penalty in the shootout incidentally)*

Aston Villa’s Lewis Kinsella** **unfortunately suffered two relegations in one day as Villa were officially relegated after their 1-0 loss to Manchester United and Kinsella’s loan club, Kidderminster Harriers, were also relegated after their goalless draw against Barrow

Former USA international Landon Donovan** was in a joking mood when he reacted to Borussia Dortmund’s Christian Pulisic’s first Bundesliga goal on social media

"It was tough but us players we had faith and determination - and our spirit motivated us. We wanted to make people realise that women can make it." Kenya women’s national team captain Mary Kinuthia** after the Harambee Starlets qualified for the Africa Women’s Cup of Nations by beating Algeria on away goals after a 3-3 aggregate draw over two legs

“Boys, I heard it’s one in five hundred million, that’s the odds of you guys winning, is that pretty close? You’ve come this far, you’ve walked it out. You’ve played and beaten the best. Bring it! Don’t look back, just look forward. Manchester United, if you’re up next, you got no game guys. Leicester City all the way! Woo!" Two-time World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) hall of famer Ric Flair** gave his advice to English Premier League leaders Leicester City

“To be completely honest, I genuinely considered punching Rafa in the face. Then the consequences of doing so flashed through my mind. Would he let me go? Or would it just lead to a massive media scandal? Surely I couldn’t stay if I gave him a smack? Punching a Liverpool manager who had won the European Cup only a few months earlier wouldn’t have looked too good on the CV, I guess, but I was still angry." *Former Liverpool goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek writing in his autobiography, “Jerzy Dudek: A Big Pole in Our Goal” about his falling out with manager Rafael Benitez when he sought a move away from the club that he felt was being delayed by his boss*

“I was listening to the PA because the ball was out of play, and as soon as I heard the reg I was thinking: ‘That’s my number plate’. I thought I’d blocked someone in, so I said to Jamie Allen: ‘That’s my car, that,’ and he said: ‘What?’ I said again: ‘That’s my car they’ve just called out.’ I looked over to Kevin Gibbins and said: ‘My car’s just been read out, can you sort it out?’” Rochdale’s Callum Camps** discovered during the game that he had left his car lights on. However, he went on to open the scoring in the 1-1 draw with Gillingham

"There was a moment after the Bournemouth game where I was in bed. I was so disappointed, so sad, and I said to my wife: 'I just forgot how to play football.' It wasn't me out there. You have the ball and you don't know what to do with it. Those two or three months were hard. I wasn't feeling confident at all." Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas **gave an honest assessment of his poor form during the first half of the English Premier League season

“Wait a second, I’m a huge fan. Ladies and gentlemen, Sir Paul McCartney!" Actor and host Bill Murray** introduced FIFA World Cup-winning coach Jogi Low to the crowd as the Beatles legend at the Laureus World Sports Awards in Berlin

“We're not a very good team right now and the results show that." *New York Red Bulls midfielder Dax McCarty*