“As a young boy in a new country, you had to make new friends, and that was really difficult.”
“When I started going to school, I started getting used to things, like the language. After that, I started adapting to school, friends, and everything. It was really difficult, to start with, but I survived.”
“It was Cosmos who actually told Crystal Palace about me. Palace came to have a look, liked what they saw, and they took it from there.”
“I just want to keep on working hard and helping my team-mates out.”
“It’s a massive experience: playing against Galatasaray and Besiktas, you can feel the atmosphere. It feels like the stadium is going to fall down due to the fans singing and bouncing.”
“What I can confirm is that I will always give a 100 per cent for Nigeria like I do at my club.”
“Every season, I want to be the best I can to be Africa’s best player. I will do the best I can.”
“The position I am playing at right wing-back, I know I can score goals there.”
“He is a legend – not just Africa and Chelsea but the whole world. Didier is a great player.”
“He scores goals, assists, and he’s got everything that you’d ask for in a striker. We, as African players, are all proud of what Didier achieved as a player. The way he holds himself is unbelievable.”
“I can play on the right, from the left, behind the main striker, or upfront – it depends on where the coach wants me to play.”
“As long as I can help the team achieve its objective, then I am happy playing anywhere upfront.”
“My footballing idol is Zinedine Zidane; he was an amazing guy on and off the field.”
“It’s a big step up for me, coming from the Championship to the Premier League, and, at the end of the day, it’s up to the gaffer when I play and what role I take up.”
“I have always believed in the ability that I have got.”
“I have always known that I’ve got the ability to play in a big club like Chelsea.”
“I want to play in every match, score goals when the opportunity presents itself, and help players in good positions to also score goals.”
“My ambition is to contribute my quota to the overall success of the team.”
“As a footballer, if you work hard, then everything else falls into place.”
“It is good for a manager to believe in the ability that you’ve got and give you the confidence to go out and enjoy your football.”
“Chelsea is one of the biggest football clubs in the world.”
“I have always believed in myself. As a footballer, it is essential to have that belief.”
“Changing position comes naturally to me, to be honest.”
“I don’t really mind where I play – left, right, up front on my own, or with another striker. I’m just versatile like that, and I don’t mind playing anywhere in attack.”
“I’m looking forward to every game that I’m going to be involved in, whether it’s the Champions League, Premier League, or anything else.”
“If I get my chance, then I’ve just got to go out there and take it and help the team to do as well as possible.”
“The main thing is to be on the pitch and enjoy my football.”
“That’s always been on my mind – to play games.”
“There was only a little spell at Wigan, when I first signed there, when I wasn’t in the team every week.”
“By playing, you learn.”
“You’ve got to keep on going up and down the wing for the whole game in that wing-back role, so you obviously need a lot of stamina to do that, and I think I’ve got that.”
“I enjoyed it very much, my first Champions League game.”
“I’d like to put on record my sincere thanks to everyone at Wigan Athletic for the tremendous support they showed me during my time there.”
“I’d like to thank the chairman, Dave Whelan, and all of the staff at Wigan for giving me the chance to play in the Premier League.”
“It feels great being in the Champions League.”
“The opportunity beckoned me to play for England, but I chose Nigeria because it has always been my ambition to play for the Super Eagles.”
“I don’t regret turning out in the colours of Super Eagles. I love Nigeria, and I was prepared to come and play for the nation.”
“I waited for the opportunity to be invited to play for the national team of Nigeria, and immediately, they found me worthy; I did not waste time to honour the call.”
“Nigeria has always been my choice if called up, and when they did, I was happy.”
“I played for England Under-16s, 17s, 18s, 19s, 20s and then 21s… then… I just decided to make the decision to play for Nigeria.”
“When you’re playing, you enjoy yourself.”
“It’s the best feeling, representing your country, and I always want to perform and give 100% for the team.”
“I’m proud of being a Nigerian international and am always committed to playing for my country.”
“It’s a massive thing to win the African Nations. It will go down in history. It was my first tournament with Nigeria, and winning it was a bonus for me; it was a good experience for me.”
“It’s tough, as Chelsea’s a very special place for me, and I’ve always had a great relationship with the fans, but it became very obvious that I was not in the manager’s plans. I have achieved great things there, but I just needed to play football, and that’s why I got the move to Fenerbahce.”
“I’m sad to leave Palace because they’re a great club and gave me my chance in football, and I want to say thanks to everyone there.”
“When I play against a winger, because I’m a winger myself, I understand what they are going to do before they try and go past me, so it makes it a lot easier for me.”
“The more games I play, the better I get.”
“I really admire Zinedine Zidane and Frank Lampard. They are really skilful, and I like the way they shoot from distance.”
“It’s good to score goals, but my teammates are fantastic – they really support me – but the opponents just want to tackle me hard!”
“They watch the Premier League everywhere in Africa.”
“For a club to come and get you, they are going to use you at some stage.”
“Every preseason, I feel I’ve done well, and it’s just about being given a chance.”
“I want to do the right thing and also to enjoy myself on the pitch.”
“I want the fans to be able to recognise I am doing something good for the club, but at the same time, I want to work hard for the team and make sure we win games.”
“I just want to enjoy my football.”
“That is my position, really: staying out wide and, most of the time, going into one v. one situations, which I am good at.”
“As a winger, you want to get at defenders and make it hard for them. Instead of them going forwards, they have to defend against you.”
“As long as I’m helping the team, I just want to play football.”
“As long as you work hard, the manager will see it, and he’ll give you an opportunity.”
“I had a good time at Liverpool. They were great lads. The manager had his reasons to keep me on the bench, and at the same time, they were on a good run.”
“To me, I would say that Cesar is underrated. As a defender, he has got everything. He’s quick; he’s got that desire, passion for the game. He just wants to play football. Azpilicueta is never tired. He can run all night in every minute. He wants to play every game.”
“In football, you have to learn from everything, but everyone makes mistakes.”
“It is always good for a player when a manager believes in you.”
“I started playing for a team called Cosmos in the Tandridge League before I went for a two-week trial with Palace. They must have liked what they saw.”
“I just want to keep improving in every game.”
“When a manager doesn’t have any interest in you, you can see that as a player.”
“I never run away from challenges.”
“I love to play football. Why would I run away from playing football?”
“If I have got an injury, I have got an injury. Whenever I want to play for Nigeria, I must be 100 percent, I want to give everything. But if I have got an injury, I don’t want to force myself, because I am going to look stupid on the pitch.”
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