IF HE WASN’T A FOOTBALLER”I loved drama at school, I loved acting and doing drama and things like that. Who knows, maybe something along that line. Or I could have been involved in being a chef or a cook. Who knows?”ADVICE TO YOUNG PLAYERS”You do have a chance and you can make it if you put your heart into it. What I can do is give them a reality check, that it’s not all fast cars and money. Yes, it’s fantastic towards the end. Don’t look for the bright lights all the time. Look where it’s taken me.”ON WHY HIS PARENTS WILL NEVER WORK AGAIN”I was on 250 quid a week in my first contract and I thought I was a millionaire. To this day, when I got my second contract I tried to send a little bit of money back home because 100 pounds back then was like 200 dollars. It made a difference. Why should they have to work when they’ve worked all their lives to keep us the right way? That’s not something special I do for them, I do it because they deserve it.”ON COMING OFF THE BENCH IN THE LAST WORLD CUP”For me, being part of the Australian team and playing so many games and then sitting on the bench for the first game was a weird experience. To come on and score the goals gave me the biggest iconic experience for Australia. I just take the good with the bad and I reflect on the positives. I’ve always try to be a leader in the Australian team, people look up to me on the pitch. It’s a great weapon to have, to be a leader.”ON REPRESENTING SAMOA, A DECISION THAT ALMOST CRUELLED HIS SOCCEROOS AMBITIONS”I was only a kid who wanted to play soccer for anyone and everyone … I spent a couple of months in Samoa learning a hell of a different way of living. Sleeping in huts with no walls or anything. It was a great experience. I wouldn’t take it back for anything.”HIS FUTURE WITH EVERTON”It’s a matter of adding players and trying to keep players. I really feel that if we get the right ingredients, next season could be very special.”
Nanjing Night Net