My Dad was briefly an Everton player and I used to follow them as a boy.
I don't believe there is such a thing as a 'born' soccer player. Perhaps you are born with certain skills and talents, but quite frankly it seems impossible to me that one is actually born to be an ace soccer player
When I spoke to Everton, the plan, the project, the history of the club was interesting. If I didn't see ambition in Everton I wouldn't come to Everton and that's maybe a good message to all of the players.
That is the type of player I think I am, and the type of player I want to be - a big-play guy.
In planning any type of offense, when a player leaves a spot always replace him with another offensive player.
Mesut is a player that has been through a lot in his career through loads of ups and downs, but most of all he's a born champion and he's a player who has so many records in the world of football, so he's a player that is an example for everyone.
The mentor thing is overblown to me. I'm going to coach the player. I'm not going to have another player coach the player. They can be friends but when it comes to what I want him to do on the football field, that's my call, not another player's call.
When I'm healthy and competing, I'm just a different type of player. That's the type of player everyone fell in love with.
Duncan became a legend before he became a player at Everton.
It's great to be compared to a great player like Tracy McGrady, but I think I'm my own type of player. I'm 6'10" and a bit bigger than he is as a player. I also think I'm a bit different and play a different position. He's more of a guard, and I can play all around through five.
I never gave up as a player, and I won't give up as someone who wants to go to the Hall of Fame, because it's the ultimate goal for a baseball player or a football player or a basketball player.
It's tough at first. You realize in the NBA, it's not easy. Each and every night, you're playing against that player that was the best high school player, that player that was the best player on his college team.
I'd gone through a lot of ups and downs and learnt from a lot of experiences as a young player joining Everton and playing under pressure.
I achieved my dream of playing for Everton, from a young age I always dreamed of scoring for Everton.
My mum has always kept my feet on the ground and told me that if I carry on working hard it will pay off. I used to say 'If I play for Everton one day' and she would always say 'No, when you play for Everton.'
It is one of my biggest regrets that Niall Quinn was not here during my time... I felt he was an intelligent player. It would have been a good combination with Thierry Henry. What I like with Quinn is if you look at the player who played next to him, he always scored 40 goals because he had a hand for his head and he just put the ball where you were. He was a team player. A top-class player makes other players look good and he had that player.