The Week in Quotes
“All I really remember about it is sliding on my knees to celebrate. In fact, I’d be curious to know when I actually scored it. Do you know how many seconds were on the clock at the time?” An excited Myer Bevan tries his best to describe the first of his two goals in New Zealand’s 3-1 win over Honduras at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Korea Republic 2017 to FIFA.com
"I think deeply to the victims, to the wounded persons, kids, teenagers, adults, to their families, to their friends, to all, all of you, all of us. I think to this city, Manchester, and Mancunians, that I love deeply. I think to this country, England, and the English, that I love deeply. I suffer with you, my heart is with you. I always feel close to you." In an emotional video message shared on Eurosport UK's Twitter feed, former Manchester United great Eric Cantona expresses his support for the people of Manchester following Monday’s terrorist attack in the northern English city
“I was winning everything in Paris. I was there for two years and won all the titles in France. I had a great life, great credibility with the club … I had everything. But then I took a risk to come back to the one country that was not that happy with me. Where they always criticised me a lot even after winning the Champions League, the Europa League or where I’d played all the games. That’s why it was a risk. And I love the risk. If you don’t take risks in your life – in your professional life but also in everyday life – you never feel anything new, so I taste something new. I don’t like to stay always with the easy life, but I’m happy now because I took the right decision.” Speaking to the media ahead of this weekend’s English FA Cup final versus London rivals Arsenal, Chelsea defender David Luiz explains why he returned to England for a second spell with the newly-crowned English Premier League champions
“I just think the composure in the final third, his ability to play with his back to goal, he’s scored with his right foot, left foot, scored with his head, he looks to me to be the complete player at this stage of his career. Only two games in, three goals. Not a bad start.” Speaking on ESPN FC, former USA forward and current pundit Taylor Twellman praised the performances put in by Stars and Stripes youngster Josh Sargent at the FIFA U-20 World Cup
"This team has a mixture of fiery youngsters and slightly more experienced heads, who still have a lot to give. In the near future, we should see a good, competitive side, but right now we’re still in the rebuilding stage. We don’t have a Cristiano Ronaldo or a Lionel Messi, so we can only achieve something if we play together as a team and show incredible commitment." Ahead of next month’s FIFA Confederations Cup in his native Russia, midfielder Denis Glushakov gave a current assessment of where his country’s national team are in an interview with FIFA.com
“There are lots of offers on the table, both in England and abroad, and that’s what I have to decide on. I’ve got some decisions to make now over the next few weeks, so I will talk with my family and then I’ll decide. I think I have to make a decision in terms of a football decision, and that’s what I’ll do, I’ll do that the next few weeks with my family while I’m away, and as soon as I know what’s going on, I’m sure you will.” After lifting the UEFA Europa League title as Manchester United captain this week, Wayne Rooney revealed that he has received several offers from other clubs after becoming a peripheral part of manager Jose Mourinho’s plans at Old Trafford this season
Ahead of the final weekend of the Italian Serie A season, **Francesco Totti announces on Twitter that Roma’s home match against Genoa will be his final game for the Giallorossi before retiring
“The three of us managed to play together at Bargh Shiraz in the Iranian Premier League. was at centre-back, Afshin at right-back and I was in defensive midfield. It was great for fans to see three out of the 11 players being brothers. When we first went our separate ways to different teams, it was very hard for us to play against each other, but you have to put fraternity aside for football." Speaking to FIFA.com at the FIFA U-20 World Cup, Iran coach Amirhossein Peiravani provides insight into the footballing family he is a part of
“In this club, it makes me feel that I did nothing. Especially because you have two legends — many of them, but two are legends in terms of titles and trophies — I feel I am nobody. I always have to prove. I just feel that what I did in this club is not enough to deserve to be here.” Despite claiming three trophies in his first season as Manchester United manager, Jose Mourinho** admits feeling irrelevant at the Old Trafford club when compared to club legends Sir Alex Ferguson and Sir Matt Busby
“Being at a World Cup is a big thing. We’re learning. It’s not all about winning. We’re still young. We have to learn and get the experience. We are very fortunate and honoured to be here. For me, we still have to go back to work." South Africa captain Repo Malepe** admits to FIFA.com that the value of playing at a FIFA U-20 World Cup is in the experience that players earn at such an event
"We are very disappointed. We all wanted to win. But we can leave with our heads held high. We have done well this Europa League campaign and brought joy to the fans. We have learned a lot from this experience. We have a lot of big talents and we hope to be able to hold on to them." Speaking to RTL7, Ajax head coach Peter Bosz was proud of the Dutch club’s run to Wednesday’s UEFA Europa League final in Stockholm before falling short versus Manchester United
"We came to Zurich to play a good tournament. We worked really hard and prepared for this great event right down to the smallest detail. And we really took the fight to all of our opponents. We were incredibly well prepared. It’s not easy for the players to have 40-minute matches. Everything passes by so quickly. We are probably the ones who dealt best with the fatigue, and we managed to keep enough in reserve until the end. My players understood how it works right from the very beginning, and as a coach, all you can do is acknowledge how well they did. Congratulations to them." After leading Olympique Lyonnais to their first Blue Stars/FIFA Youth Cup title this week, former Lyon and Brazil defender Cris** spoke of his delight with the performance of his young side in Zurich, Switzerland, in a conversation with FIFA.com