I always had games on Saturdays as I was growing up.

We're professional footballers, so we have to go out there and perform as best we can and try and get the results that we want.

Ever since I was a boy, I have wanted to be a professional footballer and to captain my country one day.

All I have ever wanted to do is be a professional footballer.

As an athlete, you're brought up with that mentality that you finish everything you start. If you're going to start a meal, you're going to finish it until the plate is clean. I had to change that mentality to one of where, 'I eat until I'm full and leave the rest.'

Growing up in San Antonio, I was the dork at the Friday night football games with my head buried in a book - Jack Kerouac or Oscar Wilde, years before I really understood them.

I was lucky to come from a difficult area. It teaches you not just about football but also life. There were lots of kids from different races and poor families. People had to struggle to get through the day.

I always thought just because I love football, it doesn't necessarily mean I'm desperate to manage.