I'm not a machine. I don't see why people demand more of me than of other players.
— Rivaldo
My father never left my side; on the street, on the beach, he was always with me. He helped me on the road to becoming a professional, and now I play just for him.
I am not ashamed to say I will speak up to defend myself.
Sometimes, a player and a coach can have a different opinion. In the end, the best interest of the end, the best interest of the club has to be kept in mind.
Players that have had less minutes on the pitch compared to the usual starting XI will naturally concede more chances.
I would like to play with Messi; it would be amazing. He is the best of the world, the one who makes more differences.
When you get onto the ball, people think three or four times before deciding whether to try and tackle you. Your opponents respect you, and your markers give you a couple of metres of space.
I take part in every training session, morning and afternoon, to make sure I'm fit enough.
As far as Sao Paulo are concerned, I've never played for a club as well-structured as this.
Me, if I'm in a long-distance race, I have speed. In the sprint, I don't have so much speed.
The pressure in Brazil is a little complicated, a little menacing.
When I came to Spain, people thought I would fly home again after the holidays, stay up all night celebrating, and would have no discipline. That may be true of other players, but it's not my way.
A man without a family has nothing from life. I need my family in order to enjoy life when things are going well. And when things are not going well, they give me support.
Everything is harder when you are a Nordestino. You have to work harder than anybody else because people will be judging you with much less mercy than the other players.
Louis Van Gaal is a great coach. He has inspired a lot of players to give their best, shown them how to play.
Eden Hazard would be a perfect signing for Real Madrid, not only for his talents as a player but also as a leader.
Everyone here at Milan knows that my physical fitness is among the best in the squad; I always stand out in the tests.
I don't want to rely on what people say about me to feel good; playing's what I really enjoy.
Sometimes you'll get a player who's marking you tightly, and he'll even apologise and say, 'My coach told me to stick close to you and mark you. I know you're a great player.' But I tell him it's fine and to do what he has to do.
I don't like Van Gaal, and I am sure he doesn't like me, either.
Zidane is a very great player, a very calm player.
When I was playing in Santa Cruz or Mogi Mirim, they told me I was not the best. Nobody believed in me. The others would always be the top stars. But I did not let that get me down.
I became famous when I scored that goal for Mogi Mirim direct from the kick-off against Noroeste. It was 18 April 1993, if I'm not mistaken. After that, my name was in all the papers.
In football, the stronger team is the one which wins.
Barcelona is one of the best teams in the world. When you play in a team like this, you have more chance to show your performance.
Ronaldo? He is the most dangerous player at Real. It is hard to stop him, like Messi, because both score a lot of goals, and you never know what is going to be the next thing they will invent for scoring.
I'm proud to have played 14 matches at the World Cup with the number ten shirt and to have scored eight goals.
I'm a quiet, shy person and not someone who likes the limelight.
Of course I'm not superhuman: I'm going to get tired; that's normal.
With persistence, dedication, and especially with the hand of God, I came to be recognized as the best player in the world, world champion, among many other important titles in the history of football.
If I could choose anywhere in Brazil, the club I'd play for is Palmeiras.
