I had my own youth. I had fun playing in the amateurs, going out with my friends on the weekend, drinking a beer, that sort of thing.

In Holland you go into amateur teams, come up through the ranks and are generally spotted for senior or professional football. At 16, I had made it into a men's amateur team, and was picked up professionally from there.

I don't regret writing my book at all. I wrote it for the United supporters to give them a proper insight into what it is like inside the club, and what it is like to be a Manchester United player. I think I did that in an honest way.

I think that's one of the most important thing for a player to have - to have goals for yourself, that you want to make steps, that you want to improve yourself, that you want to go the highest level.

German football is very different to football in South America.

I was an athlete in college - a quarterback, a leader - so people telling me what to do doesn't work.

Put me in the game, and my team will win 9 times out of 10.

I wasn't the class nerd, but I was weird. I could tell long stories and be funny, but I couldn't do sports. And I was always terrified of being held back.