Xabi Alonso Quotes

"If you have control of the midfield, you have control of the game, and you have more chances to win."

"I accept I am going to miss playing because it's such an important part in my life. It's going to be difficult to fill that gap. Life goes on."

"You need to have the same ideas to work as a team, to have a good team spirit. And you don't get there in a day or even a month. It takes some time to get there."

"I have learned from all of my coaches, and I am sure I will learn a lot with Guardiola."

"I don't think tackling is a quality. It is a recurso, something you have to resort to, not a characteristic of your game."

"If you win the midfield, you probably win the game. But that doesn't mean the players in the midfield are the ones alone who determine that, because now we have strikers who drop into midfield and defenders who move up into the midfield. It is the area you must dominate."

"Managing Liverpool? Yes, for sure, I have dreamt of that, but first I have to prove myself and prepare."

"If I have to yell at Cristiano Ronaldo, I yell."

"If you go out and play your own way, anything can happen. You might win."

"Passion isn't something you work on. It's more important to construct a good team, to know how you are going to play, how to read the match. You have to truly understand the game."

"Each time I watch a Liverpool game, I feel something special, especially whenever it's at Anfield, because it brings back great memories."

"I have been lucky enough to work with great coaches. My father was also a coach, and my position in central midfield requires tactical knowledge."

"I don't think I will stop learning about football. There are certain parts we will never understand, like what happens in the brain of a player or makes a team fear."

"At the end, when you play, you want to win."

"Anything can happen in football."

"Writing is not my thing; playing football is my thing."

"Anoeta is always a tough place to go: people get right behind their side."

"I know what my strengths and weaknesses are on the pitch. My duty is to be risk averse."

"I've still got Paul Scholes' shirt at home, which I swapped with him once. When I was at Liverpool, he was one of the players I liked most."

"People in Liverpool are very welcoming."

"I don't want to just play well; I want the players around me to play better, and that's when I feel that I have done my job."

"I still feel I have a special connection with Liverpool fans."

"I used to enjoy watching Ronald Koeman, even though he didn't play in my position. I loved the way he hit the ball, the talent he had to position himself."

"I have been progressing throughout my career, which is a very good sign."

"Being a manager is so different to being a footballer. It's a very difficult job, but, of course, it's very exciting as well."

"In England, those qualities of playing it simple, being in the right position, reading the game, knowing the right moment to make things happen around you are not appreciated. Making a tackle, a run into the box - the spectacular things are more appreciated."

"I stay in contact with friends I have in Liverpool. It's not a normal club; it's so special and very important to me."

"I remember playing with my dad, and my kids will remember this as well."

"When I was a Real Sociedad player, we lost on every occasion we visited Camp Nou. Maybe that is normal for a small team, but with Liverpool and Real Madrid, you expect more."

"Growing doesn't mean renouncing your history."