Our country craves for the trophy of the African Cup of Nations. I am craving for such a trophy in my career.

Arsenal is a team that needs good footballers and leaders on the field.

Wenger never had faith in me.

I don't detest Arsenal because of the way Wenger treated me.

I need to work hard at training to become more clinical in front of goal.

Every game is tough for me because the level of competition is so high in the Premier League, and every time you have to be at your best.

I don't know what I would have done had I not become a footballer. I've always wanted to do that, even when my family would try to stop me playing football so that I went to school.

I started playing at my local estate club. I used to wake up every morning to go to play in the club. I loved it so much, it brought a lot of wonderful things in my life.

Back in the days, being able to join the Jean-Marc Guillou academy was one of the best things that could happen to a youngster from Ivory Coast. There were thousands of kids who wanted to join that school so it was a great feeling for me.

Beveren helped me a lot to adjust to Europe.

When I arrived at Le Mans nobody knew me, I had to work hard to get into the first-team.

Arsenal have always been a dream of mine and I always thought one day I would go there.

Entertaining those who come to see me is my objective.

The academy at Abidjan was my school of education. At 16, they sent me the boots and jersey with my name on the back. You can imagine how I felt: in the clouds.

I lived a dream. Any kid who starts playing can't help but to dream to play at a club like Arsenal.

You must never forget where you came from.

I started playing football in Abidjan, my African town, without even having shoes on my feet.

In Ivory Coast it's very hard to have normal shoes, so just imagine football boots - they were considered a true luxury.

Many young players tell you that they want to play for Manchester United or Arsenal. My dream was to play for Arsenal and I realised it. When I arrived, I thought: 'Wow, I'm here!'

When Arsene Wenger called me to tell me that he would like me to come to his club, I don't think you imagine the satisfaction I felt just after hanging up the phone.

I have good memories of my visit to China. It was a beautiful experience for me. I learned a lot of things. I hope Chinese football is still evolving, that they have the chance to sign other players to develop the league. We did our part of the job by bringing what we had to bring to Chinese football.

As a child I dreamed of playing for Arsenal, because I loved them. Now I hate them for the way Wenger treated me.

I have a lot of respect for Wenger. But a player needs playing time. And a coach has to put his faith in a player if he feels that he needs it.

When you get to a club and things are not going well, it's not easy to live.

A group of artists in Ivory Coast recorded a song about me.

Thanks to football my family are able to live well.

The best risk to take is to look to score goals and to play a lot.

In football you have to take risks if you want to win.

I'm going to Arsenal to play.

On any given day a team can have a bad result.

You can have a bad day but that does not make you a bad team.

I left England because I was not playing.

Almost always being among the reserves was the worst thing for me and for my confidence.

When you are young, you always want to improve, to work with great managers - and Arsene Wenger is one of the best in the world.

Arsenal will always remain a large club.

When I went to the academy, we watched Arsenal because of Guillou's connection with Arsene.

Thanks to football, I live a decent life.

Didier Drogba has been an inspiration to all of us in the Ivory Coast national team. He is a great motivator for all of us - and some of the talks he gives are like a president trying to motivate his country. It is not just what he does on the field - but also all he does for all of our people off the field.

I grew up with very little - so material things have never been that important for me.

Jay Z, Thierry Henry, and President Obama are three people I really respect.

I like to relax in the South of France. The weather is so good, the food is so good, and it is perfect because we can all speak French.

In life you will always be criticised.

I liked playing in England, I liked playing for Arsenal.

Everything's possible in football.

It's a great club, for me, and I am still an Arsenal fan. Will I come back? Maybe, I still hope to.

Whatever player Arsene picks to play for Arsenal, I respect that and so should the fans.

Critics and criticism are part of the game and I've not been affected by it.

At the academy the coaches would show us Arsenal games on TV and my idol was Thierry Henry. He inspired me. That's why I became an Arsenal fan.

I have got lots of confidence in my own ability and I know I have got to keep up my standards.