Vicente del Bosque

“A leader is admired, a boss is feared.”

“I just wanted to defend football, which is not always easy to do. Those of us who have been in the sport so many years now realise we must protect it and look after it. I was speaking about football, what it means. It is our profession, it has been our lives, and we must take care of it a little.”

“We must look after football and to do what it is necessary to bring to the game the best ethical values and personal behaviour.”

“No one knows anything about economics. It's the great lie of the economists. By contrast in football people might have contrasting opinions, each of which has some validity. But the economists always speak in conditionals - what a mess.”

“We are in a world that is quite extremist and extremism makes more noise. Normality does not sell.”

“As with Cesc Fabregas, some players who go and play for foreign clubs improve on a cultural level. It makes them grow on many levels; intellectually, because you have to learn a new language and adapt to another culture, and on a footballing level too.”

“Football has an important role to play in society. Players should have a sense of social responsibility, have a moral dimension to them which shows up in good conduct.”

“I didn't really want to be the coach who wins but the coach who educates.”

“The Confederations Cup is interesting. It served Spain very well to take part and then go on to win the 2010 World Cup. We knew the stadiums, the atmosphere, the conditions and also the difficulties of a tournament which simulated the World Cup format.”

“The certainty that our football, the football of Spain, is recognised, that's very important to us - perhaps more important than the successes and the joy that you can create. Football hasn't always been appreciated, and luckily our football is appreciated now, at all levels of society.”

“Spain used to be very individualistic in its sporting activities. Now we are showing we are pretty good in teams - that is an improvement.”

“Leadership must be likeable, affable, cordial, and above all emotional. The fashion of authoritarian leadership is gone. Football is about life. You can't be angry all day.”

“Sometimes people say that coach is a winner, but everyone wants to win. You must know how to behave in victory and in defeat, to look after what is our sport, football.”

“I realised that the political context had got worse since the 2010 World Cup. I tried to ignore it but I wanted, as a national coach - you may call this Utopia - to make Catalans and Basques feel good about supporting a Spanish side... to unite even the most sectarian and nationalist.”

“I think it is important to help our country's image outside of Spain.”