“You’ll be someone’s favourite, and someone else is going to hate you, aren’t they? I know that I can’t please everyone, but what I can do is be myself and be true to my values.”
― Alex Scott
“I love music – in my playing days, I was always the team DJ.”
― Alex Scott
“All I know is two wrongs do not make a right. And nobody’s perfect; ain’t nobody right all the time.”
― Alex Scott
“Being a footballer was about analysing performance, never being satisfied, seeing what lessons you can learn and who you can learn from.”
― Alex Scott
“I’ve always been a strong presence on social media. That’s how I’ve connected with my fans, and in doing that, I’m allowing them to win.”
― Alex Scott
“During the 2012 Olympics, I decided to put on some cheesy pop because I knew Ellen White liked it. The first song was ‘Reach for the Stars’ by S Club 7, and before I knew it, everyone was singing it – suddenly it was our song.”
― Alex Scott
“I’m that girl – I’ve never been camping; I don’t even go to festivals because I hate the cold and the rain. If it starts to rain, I’m the first one on the training field to go in and get a hat!”
― Alex Scott
“Not everyone agrees. If you disagree with me, I want you to tell me, and I’m going to come back and tell you why it’s my opinion.”
― Alex Scott
“I remember when I first got into the England side, going to meet ups where you were just doing a job, you were almost looking to go back to your clubs as soon as you arrived. That changed. The Lionesses got the feel of a club; it was a place you wanted to be, a set-up you couldn’t wait to join.”
― Alex Scott
“I’ve adopted that mentality: every day I do weights and core in the gym in the morning and train on the field in the afternoon. And I’m strict with my diet – I include protein in every meal and snack.”
― Alex Scott
“I don’t want to be regarded as a female pundit. I’m a pundit.”
― Alex Scott
“I never want anyone to think I’ve been given a helping hand. I’ve always worked for everything, whether it be on the football field or away from it.”
― Alex Scott
“My attitude as a footballer was to always be prepared – make sure you’re the fittest and know who you’re up against. And that’s exactly how I treat the media side.”
― Alex Scott
“Some people don’t like change. Some embrace it. But the way it’s going – not just in football, but in society generally – it’s more diverse. People want freshness.”
― Alex Scott
“I know what I do, I know I can play football, and I know I can talk about it.”
― Alex Scott
“My mum never once tried to push me into something different, even though there was no way of making a living out of women’s football. She supported me because she saw I was happy and that it gave me a focus to not be hanging around on the street.”
― Alex Scott
“I may not have played men’s football, but I’ve been at World Cups as a player. I know the emotions. I’ve been in quarter finals, a semi-final. I’d been substituted and sat on the bench watching us lose a penalty shoot-out. I know what happens, what you need when the pressure’s on.”
― Alex Scott
“I like the way Frank Lampard articulates, like the fact Jamie Carragher really does his homework and the way Rio Ferdinand has been able to show his personality while giving those insights.”
― Alex Scott
“If my dog Ella, named after the Rihanna song ‘Umbrella’, could be with me at all times, that would make me happy.”
― Alex Scott
“When things don’t happen in my life, I believe that I’ve been pushed into another path for a reason, and there’s a bigger picture.”
― Alex Scott
“My hardest lesson has been my most fruitful, too: that when people don’t believe in me, I can prove them wrong.”
― Alex Scott
“I didn’t want to come to the end of my career and think, ‘What next?’”
― Alex Scott
“Women are the same. We watch football; we play football. Why wouldn’t we be out there giving our opinions on the sport ,too?”
― Alex Scott
“Even when I play in World Cups, I don’t look at things like that. It’s something that I want to be doing, so why would I put extra pressure on myself? I’m just going to go out there and enjoy it.”
― Alex Scott
“I’ve been in football since I was eight. Of course I know what I’m talking about.”
― Alex Scott
“I loved getting messages from people saying they were watching during the World Cup with their son or daughter, and they could see they could be involved, too. That was so powerful.”
― Alex Scott
“My dad left home when I was super young, so it was my mum bringing me and my brother up.”
― Alex Scott
“When I was going off to training and matches at Arsenal, my mum wouldn’t be on the side cheering me on: she’d be working so I’d have football boots. I saw that you had to work hard if you wanted to do anything in life.”
― Alex Scott
“My first thought for the off season is to go somewhere hot and on the beach.”
― Alex Scott
“We don’t really compare ourselves to the men’s game or what they do. For us, it’s about trying to get more people involved in the women’s games.”
― Alex Scott
“When I started, when I was eight, I never thought I would make a career out of being a woman footballer.”
― Alex Scott
“I’m just happy I get paid to train every day and play football. I can’t ask more than that.”
― Alex Scott
“I love travelling to the games and doing them pitchside with Gabby Logan.”
― Alex Scott
“It’s no secret that I love dancing and music.”
― Alex Scott
“I watch a lot of live music, and I love the theatre, especially musicals.”
― Alex Scott
“While I was playing football in the U.S., I learnt to play the guitar, and I’m picking it up again now.”
― Alex Scott
“As a pundit, I have to tell the truth. I think players will respect that. Well, I hope they do.”
― Alex Scott
“There’s always a responsibility as a pundit, whether you’re male or female: the way you present yourself, making sure you’ve got your facts right.”
― Alex Scott
“Sure, I do feel I am an ambassador for women’s football. But that hasn’t changed. It’s been like that since I started at eight years old. I’m still me.”
― Alex Scott
“The U.S.A. have a ‘football arrogance,’ which means winning is in their DNA – nothing else is good enough.”
― Alex Scott
“If a player wants to be the best, then they also need to give themselves a talking-to. You need to look inwards.”
― Alex Scott
“My body shape has transformed as sports science research has developed. It used to be thought that footballers needed to be big and do lots of weights and little cardio.”
― Alex Scott
“When I played for Boston Breakers in my early twenties, I really stepped up my training, which meant running drills until you’re sick.”
― Alex Scott
“When I was younger, my food and fitness were less controlled – I just loved football.”
― Alex Scott
“Most of my football education was under Hope Powell, and were some of her training sessions boring? Yes. But were they necessary? Yes. We fully understood what we needed to do as a defensive unit.”
― Alex Scott
“I don’t like to make comparisons between former managers because they all bring a unique style.”
― Alex Scott
“We need to give our goalkeepers the same level of training that we’ve given to our outfield players.”
― Alex Scott
“I knew that, to be the best right-back in the world, I had to improve my fitness so I could run up and down constantly for 90 minutes.”
― Alex Scott
“To walk out at Wembley in an England shirt is a big deal for a girl who remembers playing in her local football cage down the park in Poplar with the boys.”
― Alex Scott
“I don’t get wrapped up in the politics of going down to win a penalty or getting an opponent sent off.”
― Alex Scott
“Although more teams are going full-time professional and there’s more money involved, our main incentive is simply to play for the love of the game.”
― Alex Scott
“Football made me want to train and stay disciplined. It kept me away from things like drugs. Young people are faced with the temptation to stray all the time.”
― Alex Scott
“The enjoyment of playing football gave me a positive pathway, but I could have taken a very different path.”
― Alex Scott
“No matter what happens to our game, money won’t be a motivation for me.”
― Alex Scott
“I was never motivated by money. I wanted to be an FA Cup finalist. I wanted to walk up the steps at Wembley. I wanted to win the league. I still only ever want to win trophies.”
― Alex Scott
“I see I’m changing the game and opening doors for others, from my beginning from the east end of London. It’s not a sob story; it made me the person I am today. It’s seeing kids from any area or background you’re from. There’s a chance; you can make it.”
― Alex Scott
“For me, football is football. I’m a fan; I’m passionate. I feel lucky to be in the position that I am.”
― Alex Scott
“Football is for everyone, no matter what background you’re from, what age, what level you play at. This is what it’s all about: coming out today, having a good time, and getting involved.”
― Alex Scott
“I was fortunate enough to play in a number of finals, and I can still remember waking with butterflies in my stomach. It is at moments like those you realise why you fell in love with football in the first place.”
― Alex Scott
“Every player has their own story, but I always thought of playing on my estate with dreams of what I might be able to achieve.”
― Alex Scott
“You have to listen to the anthems, allow the emotion to come, but then need to snap back into the match and your specific task.”
― Alex Scott
“The knockout games of a major tournament are when you see players’ true characters.”
― Alex Scott
“I have played in matches where individuals have frozen and gone into their shells: they don’t want the ball, they don’t communicate, and they don’t do their jobs. Fear turns them to stone.”
― Alex Scott
“In the 2007 World Cup, Kelly Smith went to another level, scoring twice against Japan and dragging the team forward with an infectious enthusiasm. She changed the dynamic, and we all followed her lead.”
― Alex Scott
“When I was in the GB Women’s football team at the 2012 Olympics, it was obvious who was in the first XI and who was making up the numbers. Kelly Smith was going to be first-choice striker no matter what, and the other forwards in the squad mentally checked out as a result.”
― Alex Scott
“Putting the need of your team above personal self-interest is a difficult thing to do.”
― Alex Scott
“I was an attacking full-back but was told by Hope Powell to just sit back when we played U.S.A. in the 2007 World Cup. It’s hard to rein yourself in, but the team comes first.”
― Alex Scott
“I’ve realised that there is no magic trick to television; it just comes down to hard work and being prepared for every appearance and trying to get your point across as clearly as possible.”
― Alex Scott
“When I finished playing, I didn’t think I would be able to replace the buzz you feel at kick-off, but when the light on top of the camera turns red, and you’re about to go live to the nation, it is a very similar feeling.”
― Alex Scott
“Being away with a national side at a tournament can be hard – you train, go back to your hotel, and often, you sit in your room, watching TV or speaking to people at home. If there’s no communal area, it can feel like being in prison, staring at the same four walls all the time.”
― Alex Scott
“I was in charge of the music in every team I played for, and that is a huge responsibility, believe me!”
― Alex Scott
“I want people – boys and girls – to be sat at home watching me alongside the likes of Rio Ferdinand or Frank Lampard, thinking that it’s normal, that we all know what we’re talking about, and that they’re not judging me at home just because I’m a female.”
― Alex Scott
“I played in three World Cups, and I would say that it was the last one that I enjoyed the most.”
― Alex Scott
“The first one is your first World Cup, so you go into it with a lot of pressure, trying to take it all in, but you are just so focused.”
― Alex Scott
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