Top 107 Quotes & Sayings by Andrea Pirlo

I'd have considered myself fortunate to be coached by Guardiola because he really puts his stamp on teams. He builds them, moulds them, guides them, berates them, nurtures them. He makes them great. He takes them to a higher level; a place beyond mere football.

I have always said that it is fundamental to have a strong core of Italian players in a club squad. At AC Milan, we had that and we won. The same at Juventus.

I've never told anyone, but my ambition is to become the leading all-time scorer of free kicks in Serie A.

I'm a bit of a wandering gypsy on the pitch.

When someone decides to come to the U.S., he knows what he's getting into.

I stick to a Mediterranean diet with fresh produce and olive oil. On a normal day, my diet is divided into the three main meals. I don't eat any other snack between meals during the day.

Each free kick carries my name, and all are my children. And they have South American roots.

One part of my job I'll never learn to love is the pre-match warm-up. I hate it with every fibre of my being. It actually disgusts me.

Pogba has never stopped improving. He has everything to become a great player. If he keeps his head on his shoulders, he can make history.

When there is a solid base of Italian players, those who come in take their example, and then everyone is working in the same direction.

My favourite England player is Harry Kane.

First objective is always that of winning.

If I look in the mirror when I get up or before going to bed at night, I see a man of average ugliness with stubble, an unruly mane of hair, a squint nose, slightly protruding ears, and bags under my eyes. But I also see a man who's completely happy with the figure staring back at him.

I want to help the MLS grow and play well.

I want to win.

When you're rivals, you can never be friends.

All I'm after is a few square metres to be myself. A space where I can continue to profess my creed: take the ball, give it to a team-mate, my team-mate scores. It's called an assist, and it's my way of spreading happiness.

When great teams meet, there is never a problem with concentration.

Do I regret leaving Milan? I decided I needed a change. I needed to find new ideas, and that was the best thing for both parties.

Messi is the best player in the world; he is amazing.

I'm Italian, but I'm also a little Brazilian: Pirlonho, if you like.

One of the biggest misconceptions is that players care about transfer fees. For a player, they do not care at all. They do not care if they move clubs for one million, 10 million, or 100 million Euros. That is just something a player leaves to his agent and the clubs.

In order to go all the way, you need everyone's contribution.

Since I was a child, I watched tapes of Baggio, Zico, and Maradona, and then I tried to replicate them just playing on my own against the wall. Certainly it's talent, but you have to cultivate that talent.

Being a philosopher is to think, seek wisdom, and have principles that guide and influence what you do. It's to give meaning to things, find your way in the world, believe that in the end, in every instance, good will overcome evil, even if there's a bit of suffering along the way.

I spent the afternoon of Sunday 9 July, 2006 in Berlin sleeping and playing the PlayStation. In the evening, I went out and won the World Cup.

Just being able to go out to dinner at the trendiest restaurants - in Italy, I can't do that.

I've learned lots, obviously - the first thing being never to forget to be grateful. The second is not to bear grudges, because in football, luck does not exist.

On the first training session Pogba had with Juventus, the players were laughing. We were not laughing for any other reason than we were just in total disbelief that this player with so much obvious ability was able to leave the club the size of Manchester United for free - and I think Juventus are still laughing.

Thanks to Conte, I got the urge of coaching, and I thank him for that.

Madrid is Madrid. There's nothing more to say. It's the biggest team in the world.

I used to watch Juninho's free-kicks without being able to figure out how he hit them. I tried and tried until, eventually, I came up with my own way to strike them.

I don't feel pressure.

To get onto the Maracana pitch is the dream of every child.

Being part of a team that belongs to everyone makes me feel good and at peace with myself.

Surely it was the best decision of my career to sign for Juventus.

Messi is always compared to Maradona, but he needs to win the World Cup because if you don't win the World Cup, you can't be up there with the very best.

When I take my free-kicks, I think in Portuguese, and at most, I'll do the celebrating in my native tongue.

When you start to achieve success, you want to get more.

Scoring from a dead-ball brings me massive satisfaction. It sets me up as an example for other players to follow, copy, and perhaps even emulate over the course of time. For them, I'm a Juninho Pernambucano 2.0, a Brazilian with a Brescia accent.

There were times we were kept in our dressing room until late at night because it wasn't safe to go home. Our bus would get attacked, the tires slit.

You can be lucky for a few years, but in the end, your defects will emerge. The reality is different. People are watching you, and those who know how to play will progress, while those who don't will remain in the lower levels.

When I was a kid, I'd take a small foam ball and try to get my shot over the couch so it would finish in the corner of the window.

Sometimes a pinch of sadism is the ingredient that makes victory taste that little bit sweeter.

Yes, many times an assist is more difficult than a goal; you need to find the right space and measure the force used in order to provide your teammate with the right position in order to score.

Swearing's my release. It's the one weapon I have to defend myself against destiny when it elects to strike without pity.

I always play to win. I always have big targets in mind.

For many years, Messi and Ronaldo will be the two best. After them, there is Xavi, Andres Iniesta, and others. I hope to be in the top ten.

Right from the moment I arrived at Juve, I could immediately sense the club's will to win, the determination to go as far as possible as quickly as possible.

There are many talented midfielders but not the kind of playmaker I am.

I've always been able to play for the love of the sport.

I'd have signed for Real in a heartbeat. They're a club with more glamour than Milan; more prospects, more appeal, more everything. They strike fear in their opponents, whoever they happen to be.

As a player, you get to the stage where you realise that you are not 25 anymore - and can't play the way you used to. The intelligent players adapt - and Steven Gerrard has the ability to do that. He is an excellent passer of the ball, possesses an intelligent football brain, and has great vision.

In football, like in life, there are always millimetres which can change things - the course of a goal or of a life.

I think that soccer is one thing, and money is another thing.

After the wheel, the PlayStation is the best invention of all time.

Before every match, I eat pasta with tomato and chicken breast a few hours beforehand. In the hottest months, I choose to drink an energy drink before the match, too, but normally, I drink just water.

I'm not one that cares for publicity.

Until I was 30 years old, my body was used to my routine of eating pasta every single day.

I am extremely lucky - I met Antonio Conte. I had so many coaches to compare him to, and he is the one that surprised me the most.