I'd rather be someone that's underrated than overrated.
Clint Dempsey
For soccer, it was Diego Maradona, and then another idol for me was Michael Jordan. To see them play and how that they could impact the game was pretty special.
It's always great to be home and play in front of family and friends, especially for a big game.
Now my faith in Christ is what gives me confidence for the future. I know that through both good times and bad, He is faithful and will watch over me.
Pressure brings the best out of people, or it can bring the worst out. It's just how you use it.
I never really thought of myself as a captain. I always thought of myself as a guy trying to win games, a guy who could look back and have no regrets.
I want to do something really special in my life.
Any point you can get is an important one.
I'm at peace with what I've been able to accomplish, not only domestically but abroad, and what I was able to do on the international level.
If someone has your arms around you, I'm not going to sit there and be like, 'OK, this is fine.' I'm going to try to bust out of it and get in position to score a goal.
Anytime you get good service to the box, it's always great as an attacking player because it gives you more opportunities to score.
I remember, growing up, losing a sister, and - life is short. Make the most of your opportunities.
For a number of years, I struggled and put distance between God and me. But He was faithful and patient and provided gradual healing and strength.
At the end of the day, everybody has the right to choose their own path in their career.
At certain times during your career, at different ages, you feel better than others.
I always kind of struggled a little bit with being captain sometimes, because sometimes you feel like you have to be someone that you're not.
My parents gave us all a chance to accomplish our goals,and I was blessed with that - I was lucky with that - and I learnt at a very young age that anything less than my best wasn't acceptable.
I'll just say this one: on each my shinguards, I'll kiss them before I put them on, and I'll put the names of the people I've loved and lost to remind myself that life is short and to take advantage of the opportunity.
Family comes together when you deal with hard times because it's the only way you know how to cope.
I'm grateful to Fulham for allowing me to come back on loan, where it all kind of started for me in Europe.
There were other clubs that I had options to go to, but Fulham has always kind of been like home to me.
The most important thing is making sure that we survive because Fulham deserves to be in the Premier League - it's a great club with a lot of history.
You've got to do what's best for you and what you want to accomplish in your career.
My parents were crazy. They just wanted to do everything they could for their kids.
Maybe the law don't always handle things, but that doesn't mean things don't get handled.
It has always been my dream to make it as a pro.
I would like to thank all of the fans who have supported me throughout my career with the New England Revolution, Fulham, Tottenham, Seattle Sounders, and the U.S. Men's National Team. Y'all have always made me feel at home, and it is something that I will always remember.
There's no extra significance on beating a certain player. It's kind of like golf. You're just out there playing, and whatever ends up happening ends up happening.
I was a mama's boy.
I do think you can't be as good as the person next to you to play: you have to be better.
The moments that matter most are with your family, your friends. They are the realest moments.
I played three seasons when I was in MLS before I went to Europe, and every year, I was able to be selected for the All-Star, which was an honor.
All-Star is something that's exciting for the fans: it's a way for the fans to see their favourite players all play at the same time.
I grew up and went from Nintendo to Super Nintendo to N64 to GameCube to Nintendo Wii to Xbox - I've always enjoyed playing games.
I loved playing with friends and talking trash over 'FIFA' and 'Mario Kart.' Then, in the early stages of my professional career, I got into 'Assassin's Creed' and 'The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess.'
You don't want to get too far ahead of yourself; you just want to take care of your body and make sure you're doing the right things to give yourself a chance to get through the season.
I think the more important thing for a player is to make sure that you're playing and you're playing well and playing consistently. If doesn't matter where you are.
You're seeing more players come back to MLS in their prime and the homegrown talent coming up that's of high quality. I think that game's always continuing to grow, and I'm happy to be part of that growth and come back to the league.
All you can do is put in work. That's what you can control, the effort that you put in, and that's what I'm doing.
We didn't have money put away in the bank for a college fund; soccer was our lottery ticket, our gamble.
You always want to play at the highest level possible and make the most of your career, and I felt like I did everything I could.
I see every year as a year where you've got to prove yourself.
It's always kind of a weird thing when you come back from an injury, especially with your heart.
As I've become a professional, I just feel more pressure to produce, to score goals and get assists. I know I'm a good player, but it gives evidence of how good you are if you're able to look at how many passes you've made in a game or how many chances you create. It's in the books. It's become more about stats as I've become a professional.
In life, you're going to have things that are going to come up against you. You can either let it get to you, or you can make something happen.
That's all I'm programmed for: to keep pushing and to try to make the most of my career and my life, to take care of my family.
With the national team, you never know how long you've got, so you always have to be pushing and making the most of it.
I've always put pressure on myself to perform well.
When you see that your kids are proud of you, that they're excited to wear your jersey and cheer you on, it doesn't get better.
You always have to stay motivated and try to make the most of where you're at.
