A biography for Paul Scholeshasn’t been written yet.
“Let me tell you what it is like playing against Messi. You are up against a footballer who can take the ball either side of you, and you have no idea which side that might be from any hint about his body-shape.”
“As a striker, as I originally was, and then an attacking midfielder, it has always been my aim in life to embarrass goalkeepers: to dominate them, to force them into mistakes.”
“If I was to become a manager, I would not want someone else to be signing the players for the team that my job depended on.”
“The first time I retired, only Sir Alex Ferguson and I knew that the last league game of the 2010-11 season against Blackpool was to be my final game at Old Trafford. I was a little bit sad, but I am not one for tears. The end of a career comes to us all, and there is not a lot you can do about that.”
“For my whole career, I concentrated on that cycle of games from August to May and being mentally and physically ready.”
“The end of a career comes to us all, and there is not a lot you can do about that.”
“When I finally quit for the second time in the summer of 2013, I had accepted that this really was the end, and, having got over that, the move into retirement was a lot easier.”
“At United, we like to have wingers who give the team width and pace.”
“Sometimes fear can bring performances out from you.”
“What I like about Pochettino is the way that he looks in control. He is in control of his players, in control of the way that they play.”
“When you are playing for a top club, when the pressure is on, when scrutiny is everywhere, you need some privacy. You need a place away from public view where people can be open, and, at times, difficult conversations need to be had.”
“As a player, I loved being tackled, whether it was in training or in a game. I took a full-blooded challenge as an invitation to do exactly the same thing to an opponent. I would wait for my opportunity and nine times out of 10, I would get him back.”
“From United's point of view, it is always difficult to tell just when a young footballer is going to mature into a first-class professional ready to play at the highest level, but the story of how Pogba slipped away from United has more than one strand to it.”
“Messi is as famous as any footballer has ever been, and yet, when it comes down to it, we don't know much about him. I read that he is a family man and likes to walk his dogs, but beyond that, he's a mystery, really. I like that.”
“Martin Skrtel is good at rattling the opposing centre-forward.”
“I suppose I should have realised that the very fact I was still playing for United at 38 years old was a sign that there was not enough pressure on us senior players from those coming into the side.”
“When a team is relegated, a new leader can help turn the page at a club.”
“Managing a club like Oldham has to be an all-absorbing, seven-days-a-week commitment.”
“Our modern coaching culture is not to put too much pressure on any one performance, to let an individual flourish over time.”
“To go and watch Manchester United, whether it's home or away, is entertainment; it's goals - whether you concede goals or whether you can score goals.”