At the World Cup, it’s the very top level. It’s going to be tougher.
In truth, I never dreamed of being a manager. Like every other boy in Brazil who was marked by the ’70 World Cup, I dreamed of wearing the yellow shirt for the national team. Unfortunately, that was not my fate. I had to undergo seven surgeries on my knee. At 27, my career was over, and I was still a young man.
There is simply no better way to generate buzz for soccer in your country than having your team in the World Cup.
When we left Mumbai to play in the World Cup there were hardly any journalists to see us off. But when we returned to India on July 25 having made the final, there were close to a hundred journalists at 2.30 in the morning. It was totally new.
I was over the moon after bowling Chris Lewis and I was a little nervous about the hat-trick. You know it is a dream come true for any player to perform in the finals of a world cup.
I had my father on the Under-21 team and during the World Cup in France in 1998 – and also in AC Milan for four months. So it was a weird experience, because having your father as a coach is pretty weird, and I was the captain. But he was great.
When you’re part of a World Cup, it’s always now or never.
I would obviously love to go to the World Cup.
I want to be in the World Cup.
Playing at the World Cup is something that I am really hungry for.
At Bayern, I was used to coming out of my box to try and clear up dangerous situations. The World Cup was just another platform, so it gave other people the chance to see me who don’t watch German football.
Winning the World Cup was a dream come true.
You see it for the men’s World Cup, fans traveling everywhere to come support their teams.
When I got dropped for the World Cup, there were times I didn’t want to play anymore. I didn’t want to practise. I couldn’t motivate myself. Then I said, ‘Look what are the options?’ Cricket is the only option. Whether I play happily or sadly, it’s still all I have. There are not a lot of things I am good at.
I’m not saying there’s no pressure at Evergrande, there’s pressure at Evergrande all the time. But I am myself and, no matter if I’m playing for Real Madrid or at the World Cup, I’ve never felt pressure.
The World Cup focus is football. Team U.S.A. is more than football.
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.
The World Cup, as an event, carries a lot of pressure, irrespective of the number of caps you have earned, and the pressure doubles when you play at home.
I’m a fan of how Zinedine Zidane ended his career, right after a World Cup.
If you win the Champions League, you become known across the globe, but the World Cup has always thrown up new stars and developments.
A World Cup is always special because it is the highest podium on which you can show your abilities as an individual player or coach, and as a team.
I remember the 2015 World Cup looking up at the scoreboard and seeing that big Hublot sign and that clock and I just think it’s a real compliment to the game of cricket.
A win’s a win in a World Cup.
It was so disappointing the way it ended but, to play for England in the World Cup, was still the highlight of my career.
Without a doubt, winning the World Cup is the highest prize in football. It’s the peak – the maximum that you can reach.
I remember watching the Three Tenors at the World Cup in 1990, and it was amazing. They made opera accessible to the man in the street.
Missing the last European Championship in 2016 and the World Cup 2018 has created a gap. That’s a shame.
It’s an amazing opportunity to be around at the right time and play in a home World Cup.
I would love to win the Champions League once again. Winning big trophies like the Champions League or the World Cup is usually making people think, ‘The players are not hungry any more.’ Still, that’s not what I feel.
Sometimes I wear makeup while I play – I did it during the World Cup because the cameras were always on us, but for club, not so much. If I’m wearing it on the field, I try not to apply too much.
I played against the Brazilians in ’82, who were definitely the best team never to have won the World Cup.
Just emotionally, as amazing as it is to win the World Cup, it’s emotionally draining in many ways.
I was lucky enough to win the Intercontinental Cup twice and I know first-hand how important international competitions like the FIFA Club World Cup are to both players and fans.
I wanted to do a sports movie and discussed the same with my friend Jagdeep Sidhu, who is the writer of ‘Harjeeta.’ In the same year, the picture of Harjeet sleeping with the world cup went viral and caught Jagdeep’s attention.
I think whoever wins the World Cup deserves the right to be named the number one-one day team in the world.
To be able to earn what Cristiano earns, I would have had to have been the best player at the World Cup or won the Ballon d’Or.
Those who know me well know that the World Cup is my goal.
I loved every minute of my 17-year career, all the Test matches, the ODIs and the World Cups. The only disappointment, if you ask me, was I never won a World Cup for West Indies.
I’m happy staying in the World Cup bubble with England and eliminating the distractions. Besides, I want to enjoy every minute of this unique experience, and I don’t want to look back and think that I was just sat on my phone.
When there is a World Cup the world stops, the country stops, everyone is hugging each other, whether old or young, everyone stops just to enjoy the football.
I personally think that we can win the World Cup. We are improving with every game. With such a young average age in the squad we can only carry on improving.
My teammates and I are best known for our penalty kick victory against China to win the 1999 Women’s World Cup. But a lot of people don’t realize that when we were first playing soccer on the Women’s National Team, the Women’s World Cup didn’t exist. In fact, Women’s Soccer wasn’t even in the Olympics.
It’s a World Cup, there’s no easy games in this tournament.
If I remain healthy, I can win more races, but I don’t think so much about setting new records. I’m already proud to have become the leading Austrian World Cup racer.
I feel that World Cup cricket should be played like football in which all the 160 countries take part. If only a handful of countries are going to keep on playing in the World Cup without making the game popular, I will be a sad man.
There was a lot of buzz about me before the World Cup selection because I was consistent and aware about the hard work and smart work that I had put in. It will definitely reap benefits and help me in future when I play for India.
I missed out on the World Cup twice and it did not kill me.
The common vision is winning – and winning a World Cup. We have a three-year plan – win the World Cup, win the Olympics, win the Euros – and the common agreement is you want to create a legacy and win the World Cup; then, everything else falls into place.
Yes there was a lot of buzz about me before the World Cup selection because I was consistent and aware about the hardwork and smart work that I had put in. It will definitely reap benefits and help me in future when I play for India.
I used to think, ‘Everything’s okay, or will be. I’ll go on with this stance.’ But after the World Cup, I was open to everything: if someone suggested a change in my technique I felt could work for me, I was willing to give it a try.
Playing for your country is special, especially in the World Cup.
A 3-0 win in the World Cup, it’s never easy.
For me soccer provides so many emotions, a different feeling every day. I’ve had the good fortune to take part in major competitions like the Olympics, and winning the World Cup was also unforgettable. We lost in the Olympics and won in the World Cup, and I’ll never forget either feeling.
That makes me think of the 2002 World Cup Final above all else. Nobody thought at the time that our team would get through to the Final against Brazil. We should remember that this summer.
Make the boys go off to the World Cup with a clear head, that everyone is behind them and everyone is with them, and trust me: I think you would definitely see a better England.
The World Cup experience is more than just the game of soccer. It’s an event. And it will fly by faster than you think. It will end and you’ll be saying, ‘Wow, it’s over already?’ You have to remember to take it all in and enjoy it.
I know I played for England at a World Cup with millions and millions of people watching, but I still stick to my same routine – I train, then go home to see my wife and little boy.
Don’t ever in your life do a World Cup and the Olympic Games at the same time. This will make your life almost impossible.
In ’82 Brazil showed that you can’t win the World Cup without a solid defense.
It has been very good here, but the World Cup game was different. It had a different significance to it.
Who says we can’t win the World Cup and the Ashes in the same year? Oh yes we can. It all goes back to my motto in life: Be proud of how far you’ve come – and have faith in how far you can still go.
