Quotes from Edwin van der Sar

I don't hate the idea of retirement. I am looking forward to it.

As a striker, all you want to do is score.

I'm not going back to Amsterdam, though it would be very comfortable there with Frank de Boer, Danny Blind, and Dennis Bergkamp. When I left 12 years ago, I said I would return, but I did not know then what great years I would have with Manchester United. I might occasionally visit training with them, but I will not be going regularly.

Playing is the biggest thing there is.

I share a special bond with Ajax. I think we are a special club. And we're known for our philosophy around the world.

The most time players get off is during the international breaks.

At certain times, you start to - maybe not lose the faith - but just wonder how long it will take until someone picks me up. I was thinking, 'Is it just me? Do I think I'm better than any manager does?'

I get great respect from the United fans and the directors and the people who are there still when you go there. It is a very warm club, very comparable to Ajax, only they have grown internationally amazingly.

I think there are always a lot of rumours about players from Ajax. We develop great players, not only in Amsterdam but hopefully also in Cape Town, and there is interest in a lot of our players, but we like to keep them for as long as possible.

I would like Ajax to be people's favourite second team. Like in Spain, if you are a Real Madrid fan, then you can't be a Barcelona supporter. It's the same in Italy. But you can be an Ajax fan.

As a goalkeeper, I needed good players around me. I needed Nemanja Vidic, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney. It's the same as a CEO.

When I was 18, I never expected to be what I was - you hope to make your debut, to play for the national team, and I want to achieve something similar off the pitch to what I did on the pitch.

You try and learn from clubs where you have been or actions clubs are taking to grow in certain markets, and that, for myself, is also important.

A lot of clubs have lost the perspective of what is a football club.

Personally, I would never criticise a player in public.

I can't sleep at night when I think about the FA Cup!

I remember that, often, Mike Phelan would just nip down to the touchline for a message to one or two players. It was usually just a tactical thing. But when Sir Alex comes to the touchline, all the players know that it's serious stuff.

Running a marathon is unlike anything I have done. You can recall all those bad weights sessions or the work you had to do in pre-season, but marathon running is worse than any of it, probably the hardest thing I have had to do in my entire life.

It's always difficult if you're coming into a new club and new league, especially the English one. It's a very demanding one, can be a very tough one.

As a goalkeeper, you always expect every team to give you nightmares.

I think every player gives a bit extra when he sees that his manager is fighting, too.

The leagues in the countries around us are probably more interesting and played at a higher level, but in general, we are happy with the way we have moved things forward with Ajax, together with Marc Overmars as technical director, to establish a squad that can compete at the highest level.

A lot of the guys who played in the 1995 final for Ajax had been there since the age of 12 or 13. Patrick Kluivert and Edgar Davids had been there from age seven or eight, so I had a lot of catching up to do.

Everybody doubts themselves. Every writer doubts themselves, every artist doubts himself, and every football player does.