Paul McGrath
On Paul McGrath:
"I found him unreachable. Time and again I would have him in my office, attempting to bring home to him the damage that alcohol was doing to his life. He would sit there and just nod in agreement, then walk out of the door and carry on as before . . . "
Ryan Giggs
On his first sight of the 14-year-old Ryan Giggs:
"[He was] . . . floating over the pitch at the Cliff so effortlessly that you would have sworn his feet weren't touching the ground . . . He looked as relaxed and natural on the park as a dog chasing a piece of silver paper in the wind."
David Beckham
On beautiful Becks:
"David Beckham is Britain's finest striker of a football not because of God-given talent but because he practises with a relentless application that the vast majority of less gifted players wouldn't contemplate."
Roy Keane
On Roy Keane's efforts during last season's Champions' League semi-final against Juventus, after a booking had made him ineligible to play in the final: "It was the most emphatic display of selflessness I have seen on a football field. Pounding over every blade of grass, competing as if he would rather die of exhaustion than lose, he inspired all around him. I felt it was an honour to be associated with such a player."