Frank Rijkaard Quotes

I like to control the ball and analyse the game.

For me, good football is not about how many skills you show or how many players you beat. It's about making the right decision every time you have the ball.

I try to have a picture when I receive the ball and know where everyone is. That's one of the most important things for a midfielder.

I always play football in my team, and I know that if you play too much long ball, then it's difficult.

If I have the ball in my hands, I'll make a play. If don't, I'll try to get in position to make a play. I think that's what it comes down to.

When you play eleven a side, you might go through a game with very few touches, but with street football, you're always involved in the game, so it is a great way to improve your skill and to learn how to create and use space, as the pitch is very small.

You need to beat a defender when you have the ball. You need to be able to successfully pass to a team-mate, and there are other attributes needed to be the complete player.

For me football is more about making the right pass at the right time.

When you play with good players, they will always create chances for the forwards to score.

There's a tipping point that happens with soccer in which you just kinda get it. I was drawn to it because the best soccer teams play similarly to my favorite basketball teams - like the eighties Lakers or eighties Celtics - teams that emphasized teamwork over individualism and relied on passing as their biggest ongoing edge.

As a player I was taught the importance of working four or five passes within your team and then stretching the play. That's something I believe in strongly as a coach.

There is so much interaction in a football match: between you and your team-mates and how you support each other, work for each other, make runs. But I also enjoy the other aspect: the pressing and how people work so hard to recover the ball.

Sometimes in midfield, it's nice because you do get a little bit more of the ball, and maybe out wide you rely on people to get you the ball.

I know I can shoot when I want. I know I'm going to have the ball. It's about seeing what the team needs at that time.

When I play, I like to use my pace and to link up with my team-mates.

I like playing just outside of my own penalty box, the player who receives the ball and organises the game.

To be successful you have to find a good balance between offence and defence, to work without the ball, but our main tactic is to work with the ball, to be in possession.

If you want to play dominant football, you need to get the ball, think fast, and play quick combinations in small spaces.

I have to play with discipline in midfield.

I have to open the game from my position. It's really important to play with the ball.

I love good flowing football where the whole team is engaged.

I like attacking football, but that's not the only thing the game's about.

I like it when I am in the middle; I am closer to the ball. The manager wants me to pass, to make assists, create chances, and I do more because I think the position is more central, and I don't ask all the time for the ball at my feet.

I like to watch teams who play well, ball on the floor, ball to feet, playing well as a collective.

I like to get the ball on the ground, make good plays and move the ball around the pitch quickly at a good tempo.