Robin Van Persie Quotes

If you're in the penalty area and don't know what to do with the ball, put it in the net and we'll discuss the options later.

I don't want Kylian to play like Neymar and keep the ball. Kylian is incredibly dangerous in the final move, and I want him to stay that way.

You have half a second to make your mind up to know if you're going to shoot, pass, drive. Don't hold the ball too long, and make your decision quick.

When Messi has the ball centrally, with time, he has so many options to hurt you.

Being in midfield, in general, you don't have a lot of time to think, and in the Premier League, that's even less of the case. You just don't have time to think.

As a wing back, when you get the ball wide, you usually don't have any help out wide. You have to be pretty good on your own out there.

If you watch me during the game, I celebrate when we press the ball and it goes out.

Harry Kane is a very complicated player to stop.

Play the pass at the right moment - not on a dry pitch and not hitting it hard enough. We don't have to accept it; that was a mistake - no goalkeeper should dribble in this situation.

I always threw the ball in, because then if I got the ball back, I was the only player unmarked.

The linebacker has to make multiple, multiple decisions on every play. Not only what his assignment is and what the play is, but all the way along the line, different angles, how to take on blocks, how to tackle, the leverage to play with, the angle to run to and so forth, the technique. So many different things happen in a split second during the course of the play, just like it is for a quarterback. The more of those things that you can do right, slow down, get the most important things, not get distracted by all the stuff that's happening, but just really zero in on a target.

If my forward arrives in a one vs one situation, I always say: 'let him work it out.' Then my players say: But we can help him!'. My reply is: First, there's a good chance you'll only run in his way, and as a second attacker you're drawing a second defender with you, and two vs two is harder than one vs one.'

I have faced many, but the most annoying was James Milner. He follows you forward and follows you backwards. It's very difficult because he attacks you and defends you, and then attacks you and defends you again.

Attacking is the tough part in football; defending is relatively easy.

Before, sometimes if the ball was played over my head I wouldn't know where I was but now I feel a lot more comfortable. Sometimes I would be going forward when it really wasn't the right time to go too, but now I'm picking my moments better.

I try to be this kind of player: the type who does something whenever he gets the ball. Sometimes in the past, I've gone through games where I've not touched the ball for 20 or 30 minutes.

I need to keep improving tactically, defensively and offensively for the last pass, the last shot.

Football players are creative when they're in the moment.

I am very proud of being Brazilian, but I am also thankful for having the chance to play in Germany for four and a half years. I have completely changed the way I play football because Germany is a tougher, faster game which is more tactical with tighter marking.

I get a lot of front ball in a position that, normally, the opponent's defense is making the move outwards, and our attackers are getting in.

I genuinely enjoy watching the full-back run up the pitch and going across to fill in.

To play three games in seven days is not simple, above all for our wings-backs.

We know it's impossible sometimes to have good defending against Cristiano Ronaldo but we want to keep the ball, with good possession, as then he can do nothing in attack.

I hate false nines.

I think off the wing and just behind the striker are probably the two go-to positions, so to speak. I'm comfortable with playing both.