I watch a lot of football and you hardly ever see Premier League players go down with cramp. The fitness, the intensity of Premier League football is phenomenal.
The Football Association have always acted more as a referee than a governor. And the FA, aware the Premier League provide players for the England team, have always had too gentle a hand on the tiller. The result is that the Premier League are the tigers in the English football jungle everybody's scared of.
I love the Premier League, I absolutely love Premier League games. Removing myself a footballer, I watch the Premier League. It's a great league, fantastic football is played in it.
Of course the Premier League is the most difficult league in the world because it's so even. I think you can't really compare other leagues with the Premier League. In the Premier League, every team can beat every team, and in football, that's something where you can have surprises.
We want hungry players, players who have a burning ambition to play in the Premier League and stay in the Premier League for years to come.
The Premier League is probably the best in the world so if you have a lot of players who play well there, it's normal that they are going to grow as players.
Alan Hutton and I are always fighting the corner for Scottish football. It's a really tough league down here with a lot of quality players trying to get into the Premier League.
Many players in the French squad play in the Premier League or have played in the Premier League, so I knew about the level.
The England team shouldn't be picked on whichever players are in the Premier League when you've got a Premier League player playing in the Championship.
Jelavic improved massively going to the Premier League. He was great for Rangers, but Premier League is different: faster and more physical. He is perfect for the Premier League, has everything to succeed.
There are so many great players in the Premier League and of course the big teams are always the favourites, but the teams below them also play good football. The mixture of foreign and English players works really well.
Obviously, no-one's going to watch Belgian football. Nobody is going to watch Portuguese football. But I've played with some players who right now are killing it in the Premier League.
It's very difficult to pick a 17-year-old who's had 10 minutes of first-team football. You're talking about replacing senior players with some 17-year-olds who haven't played Premier League football.
It's such a crazy league, the Championship. People used to say that to me, and when you are in the Premier League, you don't really take notice. It's a good league; it's tough, and I like it. But the Premier League is where I want to be, with Villa.
I chose Chelsea because I spoke with the manager here and when I did that, I felt the capacity of the manager and that is why I made my decision. And of course I like Premier League football and that is why I decided to stay in the Premier League.
The only thing that Celtic doesn't have is the propaganda, which is the Premier League. In every other aspect of football, Celtic is a huge club: fan base, stadium and history. They have a fantastic history. What it doesn't have is the opportunity to play in the Premier League.