Quotes from Demba Ba

I know there are footballers who want to fight for justice, whether Muslim, Buddhist, Christian, any belief.

I played in Belgium, in France and in Germany, which was very good - but England is very special.

Being a Muslim is more important than me being a footballer. A good Muslim is a good person, so I try to be a good person. I just live the way I want to live.

I was at my house in Paris, having a day off, when I got a phone call from Arsene Wenger - he asked if I'd come back to London for a medical. I woke up at 9 A.M. on transfer deadline day, jumped on a train, got to London, but then it never happened.

Alan Pardew is a very good coach and is doing very well at Newcastle. He is very thorough in his preparation for games and makes sure we all know our roles on the pitch.

Yes, I'm from a very big family but it's great. All my brothers are friends as well. We all grew up together and have great memories.

At West Ham there were a couple of French players and they helped me get used to the team and the club.

I enjoyed my time at West ham, scored a few goals there but was bitterly disappointed when we were relegated.

As long as I'm having fun, I'm happy.

Eden Hazard is one of my close friends and Branislav Ivanovic I like.

I do not have to whine about missing the chance to play in a World Cup.

I don't care what religion you are, you cannot say 'I accept certain things but I reject others.' That's not the right behaviour.

English people have a great sense of humour.

We all have different causes that touch us emotionally and I believe anybody should fight for a cause they believe in. I'm a Muslim, I'm African, so certain causes will affect me more than they do other people.

The first image I have of club owners is that the club is one of their toys and they do what they want and they lose a lot of money and they just don't care about who's working in it.

People sometimes have a bad image of Islam but that is an image of what people are doing with Islam.

Whenever you join a club you look at the schedule to see when you can play the team you left.

Being a young kid from the hood in Paris, growing up in poverty and then scoring the goal that took Chelsea to the Champions League semi-finals, that felt like a great achievement.

It was not a sacrifice leaving the house when I was young and travelling around Europe to find a club. It was the only way to get to where I am today, and I am proud of that.

I've played football since I was seven - but loved basketball. Cire, who is one of six brothers, always played in the top two divisions in France. At the age of 15, I started having football trials. And, when I compared myself to other players, I thought, 'why them and not me?'

Even if Sadio comes and tells me that he's better than Messi, I'd slap him in his face and tell him 'shut up boy, sit down!' But in 2019, in my perspective, he had a better season.

I just loved kicking a ball but I was determined to be a footballer and I wanted a professional contract, I would go to any professional club to get one. From 15, all I wanted was to be a footballer.

When you play, it's to win, to win trophies. That is what it is all about and what is in my mind.

I had always worked to get to a club like Chelsea and start winning some trophies and doing what I have got to do.