Granit Xhaka
We always have hope. Hope dies last.Collection: Hope
I'm a person who thinks realistically but has dreams and fantasies as well.Collection: Dreams
I wouldn't change myself for anybody. I am who I am; people accept me, or they don't. I have my strengths and my weaknesses, which I can try to improve upon, of course. I'm still not the finished product.Collection: Change
Personally, I can handle criticism, especially when it is deserved, and it's because my dad never, ever said 'Well done' to me. He did it on purpose so that I kept my feet on the ground.Collection: Dad
The family is our greatest luxury.
I am still young; I am still fresh, and I want more.
In Camden, it's just the atmosphere that gets me. It's simple. It's nice. It's real. And it's the people, too. I like to interact with them because they are normal and I am normal. People probably don't expect an Arsenal player to come to Camden Lock and, basically, be a normal guy.
When you want too much, you don't usually achieve much.
I am a regular for one of the biggest clubs in Europe, and I want to progress still further.
When I think about a mid-table club like Everton spending £150 million during the summer, I am lost for words.
I heard my new team-mates saying, 'We have got to hope that we don't go down.' I thought to myself, 'What kind of a mentality is that?'
It's aggressive, and I like the way Arsenal play football. It's not like other countries, but it's very, very nice here.
I don't think Gladbach are on the same level as Arsenal.
I am in an outstanding city, an outstanding club. The only thing that Arsenal has been missing is a league title.
I guess I'd say I'm quite an aggressive player. Fair but aggressive, someone who likes the tough stuff.
I've picked up quite a few yellow cards in the last few years - a few reds, too. That was the case as a youth player as it is now. But I don't see it as a problem. That's how I play. If you take that away, then I wouldn't be where I am now. So I don't think the yellow cards or the red cards are too big of an issue.
I have learned one thing in my life: If I put too much pressure on myself, then everything goes wrong.
I remember I was young, and the first game I watched was in the Premier League. It's a big dream for me, and now that I'm here, I am very, very happy.
My brother was always going to go in the direction of football. With me, it was more between school and football. Eventually, it worked out for both of us. We're pleased to have gone down that path. I'm proud that my parents always supported us, in good and in bad times. You need that.
I play with a lot of emotion because I'm a passionate guy, and I play with that passion. I love playing that way. Sometimes you're late onto the ball, sometimes you're not. Sometimes you make contact with the guy when you tackle him, sometimes not. It's a sport where individual duels are vital, so I don't see it as a problem.
He's not a coach who speaks to you every day. Wenger has spoken to me two or three times. He's told me he's very impressed by how I train and how I'm a disciplined character.
Arsenal were really interested in me for a long time, and I think that I fit into the football Arsenal play.
There a lot of occasions when Albanians cause trouble, but then we are also very nice people. People sometimes forget that there are good people from the Balkans as well.
When I went to Gladbach from Basel in 2012, I put a lot of pressure on myself at first, and it was too heavy. I will not put any pressure on myself at Arsenal, even though the transfer fee was high.
Ottmar is a big coach and a good gentleman. I don't know if I'm a young Schweinsteiger; I'm another player. I am Granit Xhaka.
When I was younger, even though I had a big brother, my parents would give me the house key every day.
The fans are amazing. I'm really happy here at Arsenal, and I'm going to do my best for this club.
London is really nice, and I'm really happy here, but, of course, I've moved here to play football and not just to be in the city.
In games, you notice there's more sprints than in Bundesliga. It takes a while to get used to.
I think every new player needs time when they come to a new club and a new country, and I certainly did.
Maybe if I was born in Kosovo, I might not be where I am now, so I need to thank Switzerland, of course, because I went to school there, learnt to play football there, and started my career there.
Moving to England, again it's a new language to learn, and I've got to get use to the mentality, the culture, but I think I've integrated myself really well into this team, and I'm happy so far.
I like to play football. I'm an aggressive player and also a leader.
The Premier League is not my goal but a childhood dream. It is a dream that could be fulfilled.
I know that there are coaches in the Bundesliga that have said in team meetings, 'Provoke Xhaka; he will eventually go ballistic.' I think that is sad. That, in my view, has nothing to do with football.
No, Borussia is not falling apart. It does not matter whichever players will leave. That is what the past has showed. The club has developed and actually improved despite big-name players leaving.
To have six years of professional football under my belt already is really something.
I know I've made mistakes, and sometimes I've talked about things too openly or directly. That wasn't good, and I've learned from that.
I compliment Kramer perfectly. We both put in a lot of legwork, win many balls, and we're comfortable with the ball at our feet. We also talk a lot both off and on the pitch.
I have never had any contact with Bayern Munich, let alone have agreed personal terms.
You can't afford to rest on your laurels at all, or you'll instantly be on the bench.
I knew before I arrived that the pressure at a club that challenges for the title grows quickly. The season is long; we'll become stronger with every game.
What happens here, the daily agenda of Arsenal, is very different from what I experienced in Monchengladbach.
I don't mind being criticised, because I am not that easy to knock down, and no-one can destroy me. But I am bothered by the stupid people who call me dirty, brainless, and an idiot. You don't say words like these to someone who you know nothing about.
My game is about being aggressive, and I'm not the same player if you take that away from me.
I never hesitate to go into a tackle, and I don't go onto the pitch to pull out of a challenge.
It's difficult to say no when Manchester City want you and you could play there. That much I have to admit.
In the past, we showed that we could play football, but Vladimir Petkovic has worked with us on the psychological side of things in particular. I think that's where we've made the most progress. He's brought us closer together as a team.
If you win, you're heroes. But if you don't, then you're losers. That might sound harsh, but that's the way it is.
People who know me know that I don't talk about the play-offs. It's not an issue for me at all.