“In my position, I've always admired Claude Makelele. I grew up watchin...” — Javier Mascherano Quote

“In my position, I've always admired Claude Makelele. I grew up watching him play. I was able to play against him in the final stages of his career. I have always liked his way of playing football, and given my position and style, he's been a mirror to compare myself against.”

“Great players are very good technically, but they also have a huge amount of character because, without it, you will never get to see that great technique because it vanishes under pressure.”

“I'm not a player that gets angry, especially not with coaches.”

“You don't need me to talk about the qualities of David Beckham as a footballer. He's a player who is admired throughout the world. He's pure quality.”

“I'm not saying that maybe there isn't a kid out there whose behavior hasn't been influenced by me in some way. I'm sure there is. But I can only speak for myself, and if you'd asked if my behavior had ever been affected by people I'd admired from afar, like musicians or footballers, that'd be a yes, totally. Right down to their hand gestures.”