The Week in Quotes
"I’m not saying he’s as good as who I’m going to say. He reminds me of Messi, the scampering way he plays. He gives me a Messi vibe. He’s short, his style. He’s got a Messi vibe." Former Arsenal and Crystal Palace forward Ian Wright talks about Egypt and Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah
"I have always wanted to be here (one of Africa’s best players). I put myself under pressure and take risks. Right now I have the ambition to be the best Egyptian player in history. " *Salah speaks at a press conference ahead of the CAF Awards 2017*
"With the money he will raise, you can buy five players but none of them will be like Eden. It would be like Barcelona losing Lionel Messi or Real Madrid losing Cristiano Ronaldo." Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois speaks with Het Laatste Nieuws about the importance of Belgian midfielder Eden Hazard staying at the club
"(Laughs) I’m going to say the same thing as Thibaut: first he has to sign, then I might follow. I don’t know who’ll be the first to sign a new deal. That’s a secret." *Hazard responds to Courtois' comments and says his re-signing with Chelsea may be dependent on his Belgian counter-part doing the same*
"I want to be perfect and yet there are some parts of my game I have to improve to reach the maximum level. Which part? Penalties, I have to practice them more." *Lionel Messi talks about his new year’s resolution, in an interview with Blic Sport*
"Fishing gives me peace, tranquility. And also, as a forward player, it helps me, with my eyes. You have to wait for the moment to attack to catch the fish. And in football my position is basically the same. You have to wait for the precise moment to attack. I wait for the fish to catch them." Paris Saint-Germain and Uruguay forward Edinson Cavani tells the Telegraph about what helps him have an eye for goal
"We are not only aiming for the quarter-finals. We don’t want to set a limit on our ambitions. We want to aim as high as we can because we know we have the potential. Every team in the World Cup has a chance and we want to do our best ever, to get to the final and even win the World Cup." Mexico forward Javier Hernandez sets his sights on winning the World Cup in Russia this summer, speaking with West Ham United’s official website
"When Messi and Ronaldo get older, it will be Neymar and Dybala who will be the best players in the world. He has a whole lot of football ahead of him and I know that he can keep improving." Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri talks about Paulo Dybala’s potential, speaking with Premium Sport after a 3-1 victory over Hellas Verona
"Sometimes things happen in the game and you face a lot of the ups and downs but it is something you cannot change. I am always trying to be a better man and sometimes when I'm alone in my room, I just think about all these things. I wish it could be rewound but it has happened. It's going to live with me for the rest of my life. Something can happen like it again and I can redeem myself or maybe my son or nephew is going to do it in the future and you might never know. But if it doesn't happen like that then I'm going to live with it for the rest of my life." Ghana forward Asamoah Gyan talks at the LEAD Series in Accra about his missed penalty kick in the quarter-finals against Uruguay at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
"You can come back later and tell me I was wrong, but in my opinion I’m quite sure that Denmark is going to win against Australia and qualify for the following round. The Aussies play very physical, I think it’s the same in the A-League – it’s more physical than technical and tactical. I think that’s where Denmark can get in trouble if they start to try and match it physically with Australia. But if it’s a technical and tactical game, Denmark will beat Australia." Melbourne City centre-back Michael Jakobsen speaks on SEN about his birth country’s chances against the Socceroos this summer
"It's not Paul Pogba's fault he makes much more money than Paul Scholes." Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho responds to former United midfielder Scholes' criticism of current midfielder Paul Pogba, speaking after the club's 2-0 win over Everton
"Harry is now one of the best strikers in Europe – there is no question about that. As a player, you can always work on parts of your game and try to improve – but there are some things you can’t teach. That natural goalscoring instinct is for me a talent that you are born with. I have seen over the years with Ronaldo, Cristiano Ronaldo, Inzaghi, Batistuta, they have that natural instinct that can really make goalkeepers suffer – and it’s clear Kane also has that." Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon speaks with the Mirror about Tottenham Hotspur forward Harry Kane ahead of the two sides’ round-of-16 UEFA Champions League match in February
"The Premier League isn’t decided yet, but we are in a position of great strength to win it. It’s my seventh year here, I know a bit about the league and the most important thing is to win points in December, and we have done that very well, we have to keep it going in the matches that are left. I would prefer to win the Champions League over the league because it’s something City haven’t won yet." Manchester City forward Sergio Aguero speaks after their 3-1 victory over Watford about his dream of lifting the Champions League trophy with his club
"I told him I have another dream of becoming a real life soccer player not just a freestyle footballer who has skills." *Mahmoud Ibrahim Tawfik tells Reuters about ‘The Miracle Team’, a dream of a group of Egyptian one-legged players who are hoping to start a league for disabled players in the country*
Borussia Dortmund and USA midfielder Christian Pulisic shows off his basketball skills as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang adds his commentary — perhaps Pulisic has learned a thing or two from his "biggest inspiration"