Words matter. These are the best Edwin van der Sar Quotes, and they’re great for sharing with your friends.
I can’t sleep at night when I think about the FA Cup!
For us at Ajax, it is all about football.
I’m just not very rock n’ roll.
I don’t think there was a single United player from 2009 who could say he gave it everything and played well.
I think every player gives a bit extra when he sees that his manager is fighting, too.
It’s always difficult if you’re coming into a new club and new league, especially the English one. It’s a very demanding one, can be a very tough one.
Ajax always bring through young players from their academy – we can’t pay €20m for a player, so we make sure we develop those players and give them the opportunity to play.
The Dutch league is not one of the strongest five leagues in the world, or even Europe, and that’s why it is difficult to maintain.
You know you’re in for a tough time if you’re trailing and the other teams are doing well.
Every flaw you have or lapse of concentration can cost you a goal, so you have to be on your toes every minute of the game.
You hope to bring your ‘A Game’ to any game, and of course you do in a final. You hope to bring experience, fitness, communication skills, motivational skills.
The most time players get off is during the international breaks.
It doesn’t matter whether it is your first game or your last game: you want to win.
I am not worried about being a legend, like Solskjaer; you do your bit, and that’s what counts.
If you are in the Premier League or at Barcelona, Real Madrid, or Bayern Munich, you are at an end station.
I signed for Ajax in 1989 when I was still at school.
Being at Manchester United is a great way to play at the highest level and win trophies with a team that is very closely knitted together.
Diehards know what Ajax is about, but you always need a new following, and if you are not successful, it is difficult.
Every time I hear that Champions League song, it reminds me of hearing it for the first time in the old Olympic Stadium in Amsterdam.
I’ve been the captain at Ajax and once for the national team – it’s nice and makes you an important player.
I’m always quite rational.
At Ajax, Juventus, and with Holland, I have played with top teams, and now I want to use my experience to reach the same goal with Fulham.
I will miss football.
If you have a love for sport, everybody knows the success of Madrid in the ’60s, Ajax in the ’70s, Bayern Munich, and so on.
It’s hard to put your faith in youngsters, but Ajax have always done that.
You want to build your own team for the highest level, and that happens more with teams that stay together.
At Ajax, we have a certain philosophy that is sometimes more important than winning – the development of players.
I share a special bond with Ajax. I think we are a special club. And we’re known for our philosophy around the world.
I think England’s always good at making something special.
I didn’t find it hard to settle at United because there was a great bunch of players, great staff, and a good atmosphere at the club.
Craven Cottage is a great stadium, really traditional, going through the rows of houses until a stadium suddenly appears.
I would like Ajax to be people’s favourite second team. Like in Spain, if you are a Real Madrid fan, then you can’t be a Barcelona supporter. It’s the same in Italy. But you can be an Ajax fan.
A lot of clubs have lost the perspective of what is a football club.
We want to bring our own players through. That is what people like about Ajax.
As a striker, all you want to do is score.
It’s hard for the older boys to play twice a week, so it’s important for everyone in the squad to play their part.
I am 40 years old, but I still feel fit.
When I was 18, I never expected to be what I was – you hope to make your debut, to play for the national team, and I want to achieve something similar off the pitch to what I did on the pitch.
Coming to Old Trafford gave me a new lease of life.
If I see something right, I say so.
It’s always hard the moment you decide to stop playing. It doesn’t matter if you’re at a small club or a big club: it’s the end of your playing career, so that’s always going to be a big moment for any player.
You have to get your motivation from within, and it doesn’t matter if you lose in the quarters, the semis, or the final. You must want to have another chance of winning the trophy.
You get confidence when you get on a roll. When you are not struggling, and you get your players back, it is bound to make everyone feel better about themselves.
You try and learn from clubs where you have been or actions clubs are taking to grow in certain markets, and that, for myself, is also important.
