Gareth Barry

“All I can do is give 100% for the club. That is all the fans will want to see anyway.”

“We never seem to make things easy for ourselves at Everton, and at City, it was the same, having to come from behind to get ahead in the big games.”

“Everyone's expecting you to be playing fantastic football, winning every game, and course it doesn't happen like that.”

“I'm never going to be seen as an attacking midfielder who's going to dribble past anyone, create untold chances, and score lots of goals, but going forward is something I've always enjoyed doing.”

“I have had four great years at Everton. The fans have been brilliant with me from the day I signed until the day I left. I am proud that the club will always be a big part of my career.”

“After Euro 2008, football in England was shattered for a bit, and people were losing interest in following England.”

“British managers tend to be a bit more hands off, let you express yourself in training.”

“It has felt like the World Cup was never going to come for me.”

“I want to come and help the team. That's always been the same for me wherever I have played.”

“It's a fantastic life I've been living - let's keep it going.”

“I had my time in the England shirt and won a lot of caps.”

“Against Chelsea, you will have periods in the game when you are right up against it, when they keep the ball. They are pretty solid the way they set their team up.”

“Martin O'Neill has definitely got the best out of me.”

“I played a lot of games for Villa, and one of my regrets is not winning a trophy there - that still hurts, and that's why the big games are important.”

“It was Martin O'Neill who said, 'You're a central midfielder.' He put faith into players. He was very clever at getting into players' heads, leaving little remarks to make me believe more. The players at Villa all moved up another level under him.”

“I was 32 when I signed for Everton, and Roberto Martinez said, 'With your style of game, you can play until you're 40.' I'm sitting there laughing at him, but he was deadly serious. I still laughed.”

“You play the game to win things, and if you asked me whether I would want to finish in the top four or win the FA Cup, it'd be FA Cup every time.”

“If you win games, you think things are comfortable, and they are not. The best players don't think that way, and that's why they get to where they are: they don't worry about what has gone on and think only about the next game.”

“That's one thing that's been aimed at me since I was 17: a lack of pace.”

“In 2012, we had just won the league with City, and I was really high on confidence going into the Euros when I picked up an injury, which meant I couldn't go.”