"I am a man of peace."

"I used to tease the other kids because I played better than them. Then my father said, 'Come here. Don't do this with the kids, because God gave you the gift to play football. You didn't do anything. …"

"Football is like a religion to me. I worship the ball, and I treat it like a god. Too many players think of a football as something to kick. They should be taught to caress it and to treat it like a p…"

"A team is not a one-man show. There's 11 of us out there."

"If I pass away one day, I am happy because I tried to do my best. My sport allowed me to do so much because it's the biggest sport in the world."