Not Andy Naylor
Well-known member
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/from-marking-messi-in-russia-to-settling-on-south-coast-9kjh0x8sk
Behind the Times paywall, of course. Not much about mighty Albion in there, but a few snippets:.
He has delighted Brighton fans by being spotted in town, embracing his new surroundings. “I don’t make a fuss that I’m a football player. I like to be around normal people. I like to mingle,” he says. “Sometimes you would meet me — not in a pub, but some local coffee place — sitting between other people. Everybody says, ‘But you’re a football player, and you just sit there with normal people?’ But I am normal too. I just play football and football just happens to be quite popular in the world.
“I’m just a human being like anyone else. I know there is a culture of some football players who go to certain places, fancy restaurants, and I don’t mind going to a fancy place sometimes but I don’t need it every day. If I’m on vacation, I like to go to local businesses to eat. That’s how you get a feel for the culture of the place. I like to be grounded and stay humble.
“My race is human being. My religion is love and that should be the approach for everyone. Am I religious? Let’s say I’m spiritual. I think there’s an almighty force out there. I think everybody has an inner God, and everybody is able to activate this. You just try to be a good person, do the right things.”
And:
He has played twice, in the famous 3-2 win over Manchester United and the narrow loss away to Liverpool. “When I first saw the schedule, I was, ‘Oooh that’s nice. I’ll get the real feeling straight off.’ With Liverpool, you always have to be sharp and ready, because they try to pull you out, and then use the gap for runners. Manchester United are not in their best shape right now which was good for us. But we could have even scored more. We were excellent.
“Nobody here feels more important than another. Some players ask me about the World Cup, but not too much. The World Cup doesn’t count here any more. It is about the Premier League and staying in there the second year.”
Behind the Times paywall, of course. Not much about mighty Albion in there, but a few snippets:.
He has delighted Brighton fans by being spotted in town, embracing his new surroundings. “I don’t make a fuss that I’m a football player. I like to be around normal people. I like to mingle,” he says. “Sometimes you would meet me — not in a pub, but some local coffee place — sitting between other people. Everybody says, ‘But you’re a football player, and you just sit there with normal people?’ But I am normal too. I just play football and football just happens to be quite popular in the world.
“I’m just a human being like anyone else. I know there is a culture of some football players who go to certain places, fancy restaurants, and I don’t mind going to a fancy place sometimes but I don’t need it every day. If I’m on vacation, I like to go to local businesses to eat. That’s how you get a feel for the culture of the place. I like to be grounded and stay humble.
“My race is human being. My religion is love and that should be the approach for everyone. Am I religious? Let’s say I’m spiritual. I think there’s an almighty force out there. I think everybody has an inner God, and everybody is able to activate this. You just try to be a good person, do the right things.”
And:
He has played twice, in the famous 3-2 win over Manchester United and the narrow loss away to Liverpool. “When I first saw the schedule, I was, ‘Oooh that’s nice. I’ll get the real feeling straight off.’ With Liverpool, you always have to be sharp and ready, because they try to pull you out, and then use the gap for runners. Manchester United are not in their best shape right now which was good for us. But we could have even scored more. We were excellent.
“Nobody here feels more important than another. Some players ask me about the World Cup, but not too much. The World Cup doesn’t count here any more. It is about the Premier League and staying in there the second year.”
