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2017 was another terrific year for football as the sport and its players broke new territories. Real Madrid became the first team to defend the Champions League and Neymar left Barcelona to join Paris Saint-Germain among several other notable moments in a remarkable year.
There were several stunning title wins both at the club and country level with England in particular, winning tournaments across age groups. Now, depending on the nature of performances and success achieved, it is natural for footballing personalities to speak up. Some of the statements cause quite a stir while a few others remind us of the human aspect of football.
The year has seen quite a few quotes getting widespread attention for several reasons and let's have a look at ten of the best.
#10 United's spending is not enough
Jose Mourinho has always been known as the "Special One" but his luck has been on the wane in recent years. His interviews always used to something to watch for his wit and dry humour. They continue to be one to look for in the present scenario as well, with the only change coming in the form of the Portuguese appearing bitter than ever.
Case in point is his recent remarks on Manchester United's spending not being enough to match Pep Guardiola's Manchester City who sit a whopping 15 points ahead of their local rivals after 20 league games. This led to Mourinho retorting when the press asked him about the dropped points in recent games when he said:
"We are in the second year of trying to rebuild a football team that is not one of the best teams in the world. Manchester City buy full-backs for the price of strikers."
On being reminded about United's big spending on the likes of Paul Pogba, Romelu Lukaku, Nemanja Matic and so on, the Portuguese said:
“It is not enough. And the price for the big clubs, the price for the big clubs is different from the other clubs."
As one would expect, this has caused quite a commotion across England and Europe as Mourinho himself has spent close to £260 million since he took over the United hot-seat. One can expect this quote to stay relevant in the coming year as well given Mourinho's rivalry with Guardiola and United's rivalry with City.
#9 Zlatan saying Zlatan things
Zlatan Ibrahimovic is a player who has become a cult figure in the footballing world for his quips and straightforward comments as much for his exploits on the pitch. The Manchester United forward suffered a major knee injury in April and it looked like that would be a sad end to a stellar career. However, the Swede lived up to his reputation of being able to walk the talk and he expressed the same in typical fashion in October.
"I told you, lions don't recover like humans. That I have now proved, rather than just saying it. I am just thankful I am able to run, do my things, do a little bit of 'abracadabra' magic - things that a lion does!"
The 36-year old is nearing the end of a glorious career and he is a personality that will be sorely missed.
#8 Alonso remains classy on retirement
2017 saw the retirement of several top players such as Philipp Lahm, Totti, Andrea Pirlo and Xabi Alonso. The latter called it a day on an illustrious career with titles at Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
The Spaniard has always been a classy player on the ball and off it as well.So, when he announced his retirement, he only required a few words to express his emotions.
Stay classy, Xabi.
#7 Rooney becomes Manchester United's leading goalscorer
It is not often that a player comes to a big club and spends more than a decade playing for the first-team. Even so, it requires a lot of talent, dedication and effort to break the goalscoring record at such clubs. Even for the two greatest players of this generation, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, it took quite a good amount of time to become the leading goalscorers at Barcelona and Real Madrid respectively.
Hence, Wayne Rooney's efforts to break Sir Bobby Charlton's age-old goalscoring record at Manchester United was a huge feat in itself. Unsurprisingly, it was a bittersweet moment for Charlton and Sir Alex Ferguson's praise for his protege encompasses the greatness of Rooney's achievement.
"When Wayne Rooney joined the club I could never imagine anybody could beat Sir Bobby's record. So his achievement is outstanding. It's amazing. He's 200-odd games short of Bobby's playing record and that makes it even more amazing. I don't think anyone can [overtake Rooney]."
A Wayne Rooney stand at Old Trafford in the future then?
#6 Tinkerman loses his job
One of the greatest footballing stories of this decade was Leicester City's underdog triumph in the Premier League in 2016. The Foxes stunned every top club in England to script history and the man behind their success was Claudio Ranieri.
However, struggles in the following 2016/17 season led to rumours of unrest in the squad and the Italian was sacked in February sparking a massive backlash from the footballing world. United gaffer Jose Mourinho offered his condolences and respect by saying:
"He deserves the Leicester stadium to be named 'Claudio Ranieri Stadium'. The most beautiful thing in the Premier League and one of most beautiful in football history."
However, the defining statement came from the "Tinkerman" himself who left an indelible mark by saying:
"Yesterday my dream died. After the euphoria of last season and being crowned Premier League champions all I dreamt of was staying with Leicester City, the club I love, for always. Sadly this was not to be."
This was the closing statement in a story that will be told for a long time and what a classy quote it was.
#5 Terry brings passion to his retirement speech
John Terry was one of the greatest defenders ever who ended his stay at his boyhood club, Chelsea, this year. The Englishman was the face of the Blues' resurgence in this century and captained the side for the majority of his career. On his final Stamford Bridge appearance, he gave a glowing tribute to the fans saying:
"As a player you always wonder when this day will finally come. Today is that day. I've just melted. The club means everything to me. Thank you will never be enough to (the fans). They have supported me through thick and thin. They have sung my name through the good times and bad and have driven me on."
Needless to say, there were barely any dry eyes at the Bridge at that moment.
#4 Advocaat's prophecy
Football is truly an unpredictable game where nothing is truly impossible. Despite knowing that, claims are made as a prediction and every once in a while, they backfire spectacularly. 2017 provided one such remarkable instance when the Netherlands boss, Dick Advocaat, spoke ahead of the penultimate round of fixtures in the World Cup qualification in October.
The Dutch trailed second-placed Sweden by three points and were behind on goal-difference by six. Further, both sides were set to meet in the final group game, effectively making it a knockout. Hence, when the Netherlands manager was asked what would happen if Sweden beat Luxembourg by eight goals or a similar margin in the penultimate match, he replied:
"They won't win 8-0, what a stupid question that is. 8-0? Well, no I don't believe that."
The Swedes went on to win their match with the exact scoreline to dent Dutch hopes and Advocaat was expectedly embarrassed.
#3 A letter to the kit-man
Football is a sport capable of ending wars (ask Ivory Coast and Didier Drogba) and showing great strength and togetherness in times of distress. It is the human element of football that keeps fans glued to the sport over decades. In one such moment, England U20 goalkeeper, Freddie Woodman penned down a thanking letter to the kit-man Pat Frost after the team's triumph at the U20 World Cup in the summer.
'I would like to take the time to appreciate the help and support you gave me during our time away. I'd like to thank you for the time, effort and hard work you and the rest of the staff put in to help us achieve our goal. To share winning the World Cup with you and this team is a great honour. Your quality of work, love for football and ability to light up a room Frosty is something that will stay with me for a long time.'
This was a top gesture from the U20 goalkeeper and reminds of the several unseen people involved in every team's success.
#2 Se Queda
Those were the two words that set fire in the footballing world before Neymar made his stunning €222 million world-record move to PSG. At a time when there was huge speculation over the possibility of Neymar leaving Barcelona, Gerard Pique appeared confident of the Brazilian staying and he expressed the same on his Instagram account.
Needless to say, the two words which translate to "he is staying" became the source of memes on Pique and for football in general, once Neymar completed the shocking move.
#1 The best player in history
Just like how he won a record-equalling fifth Ballon d'Or to match his eternal rival, Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo made his boldest claim yet after that victory. He told French magazine, France Football:
“I’m the best player in history, in the good moments and the bad ones. I respect everyone’s preferences, but I’ve never seen anyone better than me. I have always thought that. No footballer can do the things I can. There’s no player more complete than me. I play well with both feet, I’m quick, powerful, good with the head, I score goals, I make assists. There are guys who prefer Neymar or Messi. But I tell you: there’s no-one more complete than me."
Call it arrogance or confidence, there is no doubt that the Real Madrid man is one of the greatest players ever. While his statement did receive backlash from legends of yore, there is no doubt that Cristiano's statement is one that will stand the test of time and hence, becomes the top quote of 2017.
