It’s become the norm that a player who has another year on his contract period has a decision between separation or extension.

If you are a great manager you have to have a great personality.

I think in the title race it’s crucial to be defensively as solid as possible.

Pep Guardiola tactically brings a gift that is second to none in the world.

Pep’s arrival at City was the biggest factor in me coming here. Every player wants to works with him. If you ask any player, they would be happy to do so even if it was just for a few months.

Football has to keep being part of my daily routine!

In a World Cup every single game is important; you are not allowed to make mistakes, not allowed to fail. If you want to win, you have to be there every game.

Ballack had a certain level of aggression in his game, and a strong mentality.

I liked to watch Kaka very, very much. The way he played with tremendous pace with the ball at his feet, he just left opponents behind. Watching him was a feast for the eyes.

I would be absolutely delighted if I were to have a career similar to that of Schweinsteiger, both at club and international level. We all know what he has done for German football. It is an honour to be likened to him.

Believe me: Everyone at City knows about Timo Werner. Many of my team-mates asked what kind of guy he is. He deserves respect.

I have noticed that, for fans in England, the Premier League stands above the rest.

I came to Dortmund from a relatively small team and I struggled during my first six months to find my place there. I was a bit shy and, to be honest, I wasn’t brave enough do certain things. But thanks to the help of my team-mates, and with the help of Jurgen and his staff, too, I managed to improve.

In sporting terms, I’m very satisfied with City – there are less attractive jobs in Europe!

Football is our life, not politics.

In my opinion, he has very special abilities. He has talent and he always manages to show it on the pitch. He always has the instinct to make the right decision. He uses his speed well against the opponents he plays. He has a strong finish. All in all, no one else has as much quality as Lionel Messi.

Pep has so much charisma that always makes you give more than 100 per cent, not only in matches, but in training too. His way of understanding the game also suits my style perfectly.

In a team like Manchester City, Arsenal, and other big clubs, it’s quite difficult just to have the same 11 players starting every week.

We do not only have a Turkish side, inherited from our parents and our families, we were born and raised in Gelsenkirchen. It is a city with a high percentage of emigrants.

I try to do my best in training and to get in shape and be prepared.

I feel privileged to have grown up in Germany so it was a heavy blow for me to be portrayed as somebody who isn’t integrated and who doesn’t live his life according to German values.

I have had almost only positive experiences in Germany. I want to be very clear about that.

You shouldn’t want to imitate people if it doesn’t fit with your own style.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the world class player after Messi, but for me he is not on this Galactico level of Messi.

I think struggles are part of our profession. And it’s always about overcoming these kind of moments.

The Champions League is one of the biggest club stages you can reach and I think for players it is an honour to be part of it. It certainly is for me. You just enjoy being a part of it playing against the best clubs in Europe.

Winning the Champions League is what you dream about when you are a small child.

The elite footballers of one country meet at the national team and it’s an honour for me to be among them.

That is the most difficult thing: to feel that you are useless, not worth as much as before, not worth as much as the others.

I can imagine it’s not attractive for the spectators when we play teams with 10 players around their own box, just defending and hoping for a set-piece or throw-in, anything.

I like to have the ball and play beautiful football. That’s what the people want to see and what makes football so special.

Jurgen Klopp is more the emotional one and someone who can motivate really well. Pep Guardiola is more tactical, who always takes care of details and wants to show you how to do everything. Both are world-class managers and both have their own qualities. Both are amazing personalities.

It’s important in sport and life, if you do something with confidence you always do it better. That’s the same in football and everything else.

I believe in life’s challenges and I always try to challenge myself.

It’s bad if you disguise yourself, I honestly cannot see it anymore when you’re after the game, always asked the same questions and give pre-programmed answers. I do not know if there is a solution for that. I don’t know if you can, want or should change it. But sometimes I just wish for a little more.

Of course, in the end it is all about what happens on the pitch, but it helps to have all the fans behind you.

Everyone has his or her own opinion and I always welcome criticism. That’s why we have freedom of expression and that’s also what I stand for – but I won‘t stand for insults.

We are used to the whistles of the opposing fans, but when we are booed by our own fans, it’s hard to live with.

If I have the space, I recognise the space, I like to take the ball and go straight to the goal, if there’s a chance to create something then I’ll do it.

Everyone told me the Premier League is the hardest. So I just wanted to try because I had nothing to lose.

The Premier League is the best league in the world in my opinion.

Guardiola, Jurgen Klopp, Thomas Tuchel, Joachim Low… How many players can say they’ve had coaches like them?

To be honest I think watching from the sidelines is one of the most difficult things.

You know it’s part of football to lose, it belongs to it and its necessary because then you know what a feeling it is to win and you want to achieve that more and more. If you lose you appreciate winning a little bit more.

If we lose and someone is better than us then we accept it. Handshake after the game and well done and focus on the next game. But if we lose and don’t play the style of football we want to play then we know it’s our fault and we can do it better.