Messi is so quick; he's so good. For me, he's the best player in the world.

I know my own mistakes; I know when I have to do better.

I have to open the game from my position. It's really important to play with the ball.

When you get a little bit older, you're always trying to do something different from your siblings.

Messi and Ronaldo are the toughest. But I would also place Eden Hazard of Chelsea, Neymar of Barcelona, and Karim Benzema of Real Madrid on the list.

You meet somebody on a bus or something, and they say, 'Thank you for the World Cup; it was so good to see,' and stuff like this - it's funny.

It's always fun to play against the best players. That's how you improve yourself.

It really should not matter which colour of skin a person has. I know where my roots are, and I know that I've been born and raised in Germany. I see myself as a German, and I like to show that.

You don't get anywhere without hard work. The earlier you understand that, the better.

When I'm warming up on the sidelines, I can often hear monkey chants. Me, who played so many matches for Germany.

In Germany, young players are given more time, more patience. In England, they prefer to buy already-high-level players rather than spending some time building up a really talented young guy.

I intend to explore emerging trends, not only in fashion but also in music and everything related to sports.

You mostly defend with your head, always reacting to the movement of opponents and teammates. I had to become more aware of that, play with much more consideration, the way you drive a car: you always need to look left, right, and the rear mirror to see what's going on around you.

I play where the coach puts me and try to help the team.

I can play at full back on either side, but I prefer the central defensive position.

I had only one year in England and had not such a good time. Two times, I was out eight weeks with injuries.

I try every day to become a better player - passing more to open the game - I try everything because you can always be better.

Football should and has to remain beautiful - entertainment, a celebration for everyone.

There is a no more complete striker than Ronaldo. Left foot, right foot, header - he is in perfect control of everything he does.

My motivation is that I try to get myself to a certain point, and I want to win as much as I can in my career.

When we lose the ball, I don't want to win it back directly. I act smarter now, have better anticipation, and also start earlier when somebody tries to lob the ball over me.

You need bad times to become a better and strong player.

Sometimes you lose, sometimes you win, sometimes you are unlucky, but that's life.

It's always nice to be among the best teams but not everyone can do that.