“Music was important. Football was the easy part.”

Sometimes I don’t know what takes me over during a game. Sometimes I just feel I have moved to a different place and I can make the pass, score the goal or go past my marker at will.

You rarely come across the complete footballer, but Scholes is as close to it as you can get. One of my regrets is that the opportunity to play alongside him never presented itself during my career.

I’m very inspired by him-it was my father who taught us that an immigrant must work twice as hard as anybody else, that he must never give up.

Zidane is unique. The ball flows with him. He is more like a dancer than a football player.

I am proud of where I come from and I will never forget the people I grew up with.

A Mediterranean city is really my culture.

I once cried because I had no shoes to play soccer, but one day, I met a man who had no feet.

It doesn’t matter how many times you win an award, it is always very special.

We must not let ourselves get driven off course, no matter what happens we must stick to our natural game.

To be recognised by a whole country is incredible. This is massive.

Zidane is probably the best player there has been in the past 20 years. France have recovered the best Zidane and they have progressively grown throughout this tournament.

There was huge pressure, especially before the big games. Not many people believed in us, but we believed in ourselves. We wanted to do something good and we did.

Messi makes the difference most of the time. In particular, he is always going forwards. He never passes the ball backwards or sideways. He has only one idea, to run towards the goal. So as a football fan, just enjoy the show.

It’s only natural to want to select your best players and there is no doubt for me that Paul Scholes is still in a class of his own. He’s almost untouchable in what he does. I never tire of watching him play.

I don’t know if we are the best team in the world. I am lucky to be playing alongside some of the best players around. It’s a dream.

The England team must always be respected. They always fight to the end.

We don’t wish for the easy stuff. We wish for big things. Things that are ambitious, out of reach.

That’s the thing about life. A lot of the time, it isn’t easy at all. We just have to try to make the best of it.

Love is one of the hardest words to say and one of the easiest to hear.

Ask not that the journey be easy; ask instead that it be worth it.

It’s easy to be an expert if you’re the only one in the world with an interest.

I take risks because I get bored. And I get bored very easily.

Nothing that’s worthwhile is ever easy. Remember that.

Integrity is choosing courage over comfort; choosing what is right over what is fun, fast, or easy; and choosing to practice our values rather than simply professing them.