I wasn't as fit as I would of liked to have been, going to the World Cup, but I'm not sure what difference that made.
You know, a lot of those angry sort of Southern man characters that I've been doing are based on different people I might've had as, like, a soccer coach or as a teacher.
When Rioch came to Millwall we were depressed and miserable. He's done a brilliant job of turning it all around. Now we're miserable and depressed.
We saw that he plays with his heart too. He obviously loves the game so much and was distraught to lose in the final. Seeing him cry nearly got me going too.
I love soccer; I want to be on the field.
I was a part of Backyard Soccer, and I hear that I score a lot of goals in it.
There's a tipping point that happens with soccer in which you just kinda get it. I was drawn to it because the best soccer teams play similarly to my favorite basketball teams - like the eighties Lakers or eighties Celtics - teams that emphasized teamwork over individualism and relied on passing as their biggest ongoing edge.
Contrary to popular belief, I don't spend a whole lot of time following soccer. But as I have traveled around the world to better understand global development and health, I've learned that soccer is truly universal. No matter where I go, that's what kids are playing. That's what people are talking about.
Poland nil, England nil, though England are now looking the better value for their nil.
I'm French. I have not become an Englishman. I have the impression of living on an island called Arsenal. If you fancy a sightseeing tour of London, don't ask me. You would get lost.
I predicted in August that Celtic would reach the final. On the eve of that final I stand by that prediction.
I'm a big soccer fanatic, and although I support a team called Tottenham Hotspur in London - I love that team, I wear their symbol around my neck on a chain - I've always had a soft spot for this little club.
I don't like soccer. I think it makes you soft. And by the way, you telling me it's the biggest whatever in the World, look, they drink tea everywhere too; they're pussies, you understand? I want some coffee.
There were moments when I wondered at the gossamer veil that stops licence from being libel. I suspect that taking on the job of England manager puts you outside the protection of the courts. It must be part of the job description that you will be held hostage by media speculation and can have your character tortured, molested and finally executed at the public whim, in exchange for a lifetime's supply of money.
I think Barcelona and the Spanish national team have been good for soccer because there are a lot of teams that come up playing from the back : with the goalie, the defense, moving up a defender to midfield, playing attacking soccer. I think fans want to see that. They want to see beautiful soccer, a spectacle, and Barcelona does that.
You are much more dependent on luck than you think. People say if you want to have a good relationship, you have to work at it. But you never hear it about anything you really like, about sailing or going to soccer games.
I played English football - soccer - instead of American football, because we couldn't afford the equipment.
Europeans take their soccer pretty seriously. So, when this Turkish TV host had the nerve to criticize the local team, the fans decided to do something about it, something like storm the TV studio during a live show.
So often the pendulum contines to swing with the side that has just pulled themselves out of the hole.
Youth soccer is big business. If I don't win, it doesn't matter if I'm developing players, my business is going to hell.
Overseas, kids grow up in a soccer culture. The German player sees the game eons above the American player the same age.
Teddy has lost that yard of pace he never had.
I will have to make tactical decisions, technical decisions and emotional decisions. This time it was a tactical one.
The rest of the world loves soccer. Surely we must be missing something. Uh, isn't that what the Russians told us about communism? There's a good reason why you don't care about soccer - it's because you are an American and hating soccer is more American than mom's apple pie, driving a pick-up and spending Saturday afternoon channel-surfing with the remote control.
I wanted to be a soccer player; I wanted to do it at the highest level.
