"Messi and Ronaldo have been sitting at the same table, at the top, for a very long time, and that's what makes them incomparable. So to answer your question, I can't imagine myself next to them in this point of view. That said, if you take the numbers for this year and even previous ones, I think I'm pretty good in terms of performance and goals scored. Failing to be at the same table as Messi and Ronaldo, I think I can invite them to eat at mine!" Robert Lewandowski (France Football)
"I never had a problem with Alan and he thanked me for it. But when I asked for the No23, because I was a Michael Jordan fan, the board said I had to have between one and 11. I was like, 'Are you taking the f** p? You took a number between one and 11 off me'. Then they sold Lee Clark to Sunderland, so that's the only reason I ended up in the No10." Les Ferdinand on having to relinquish the hallowed Newcastle United No9 shirt when they broke the world record to sign Alan Shearer (to Jamie Carragher)
"When I eventually die, I want to go where I lived: on a football pitch." Gennaro Gattuso
"I came to Benfica at the same time as Di Maria. In the first year I was better. I played better than him, but decided to go on loan and Di Maria stayed at Benfica. What happened? He became a starter and one or two years later he went to Real Madrid, while I continued going from loan to loan." Freddy Adu (Blue Wire Podcasts)
"It's an extra motivation to be able to, or to try to, score a goal against him, with what it means and how hard it is, as he proves in every game he plays. It makes them more exciting. He is one of the best goalkeepers in the world." Lionel Messi on Jan Oblak
"He watches my legs. If I make one step, he will see it and shoot to the other side. This is why he is the best. This is why he is so difficult. He does not show it but he is always looking. He is always watching you. His eyes are on the ball but he sees you. He sees everything, I think. It is strange. Sometimes you think you are controlling them, you are controlling him. But in a second, he changes the game, he scores a goal, and Barcelona win. Sometimes you do not see him. Maybe you are thinking it is not dangerous. And then he scores. This happened to us last season. You need to be 100 per cent concentrated. He is still the best player in the world." Oblak on Messi (Sky Sports)
"My kids are mixed race, their Mum is white. So if you call them mixed race, and there's only one race, the human race...that implies their Mum is human, I must be an alien. To a kid that's massive. They are using language in different ways and they're not aware of how powerful words can be. I always want to point out that everything that come out of their mouth has an effect." Leroy Rosenior (Sky Sports)
"You have two types of players - fighters and victims. You just want fighters. You don’t need victims. Victims bring excuses, negativity. They start to blame things that happen around them." Mikel Arteta
"There's no need for a long farewell when I've been playing each game as though it could be my last. My goodbyes have been entrenched in every pre-game huddle, tackle, pass, celebration, and each post-game lap around the field." Kyle Beckerman
"The players want to go there [FIFA Club World Cup] to win the sixth title. Only one team has managed that before - FC Barcelona in 2009. The lads are hot on winning titles, they want to win everything." Karl-Heinz Rummenigge (Sport1)
"You can tell that pretty easily from my playing time. In January, it was a two. Now it’s a nine, and on the way to 10. On the one hand, because I am playing almost every game. And on the other hand, because we are doing very well in every competition. This combination gives me a very good feeling.” Mario Gotze on feeling more satisfied playing football (Sport Bild)
"If you ask me who Michael Jordan is, I will say that he is the best basketball player in history. I think Messi will have the same status – the best footballer of all time. It is also talked about whether Michael Jordan is the best in history, and these are opinions, and sometimes it is difficult to be objective. It is difficult for a Real Madrid fan to recognise that Messi is the best. We have been lucky to have him but I really say, taking away the feeling of being a cule, that the numbers are there, these have not been invented and they show that he is the best." Carles Puyol (Goal)
"I think that in this moment after having lost three finals in this tournament, it is a dream. Because we had that dream of participating in that tournament. We know perfectly well the teams that we could face there, like Bayern Munich, but I have a lot of confidence in my team. This is football and my players and I are going to prepare ourselves in the best way to face anyone and always the mentality of the team is to win." Ricardo Ferretti (Concacaf.com)