Quotes from Carli Lloyd

I have scored some big-time goals. I've done well in Algarve Cups. I've done well in World Cup and Olympic qualifiers, Olympics. In big games when we're playing top-five teams. But yet, you never see my face or my name out there. And it has frustrated me my entire career.

Winning the World Cup was a dream come true after so many years of wanting something so bad. After that final whistle, I dropped to the ground on my knees and got emotional.

I love shopping! It's my release sometimes.

If I've learned anything in my career, it's that nothing worthwhile in life comes easy. That's just the way it is.

At the end of the day, you can be physically strong, you can have all the tools out there, but if your mental state isn't good enough, you can't bring yourself to bigger and better things.

I think that what we do out on the field is oftentimes a little bit better than what men do. I don't think that we flop around as much. I think we're tough. I mean, I've got battle wounds on my legs from the turf and sliding. And we're gritty. And we're feisty. And I think that I would never back down from a guy.

You don't want to get too wrapped up in that final destination. You want to enjoy the journey, enjoy the process, and just take it one step at a time.

I think - you know, I want to intimidate people when I'm on the field. I want people to be scared of me. That's just kind of the nature of who I am as a person and player. But I also know that you have to be emotional. You have to be in touch with your feelings. I think that's important.

Every time I step onto the field, whether people like it or not, I'm not trying to play dirty - I'm just playing tough.

It's always hard to deal with injuries mentally, but I like to think about it as a new beginning. I can't change what happened, so the focus needs to go toward healing and coming back stronger than before.

Like many kids, I was thrown into recreational soccer in my town, and from there, I grew to love it. Everywhere I went, I carried a soccer ball with me.

My emergence has been slow and steady, I would say. I think I've improved every single year. I keep getting better; I keep getting fitter, sharper - and I'm not stopping.

I don't just train to be a participant. I train to come up big in big moments. That's when I know I've got to roll the sleeves up.

In those one-off games, everyone can do those, but you put together a six, seven-game tournament, the strong survive. For me to still feel good from beginning to end, that's a testament to how I train and what I do.

I think recovery is around the clock. Are you sleeping enough? Are you hydrating enough? Are you stretching? Are you eating well? Pretty much everything that I do is a reflection of how I'm going to feel on the field. I take great pride in getting in an ice bath after training and just taking care of myself.

If I am training on a holiday, most likely nobody else is - and that gives me the edge. If I'm supposed to run for 20 minutes and I get back and it's only been 19:34, I'm going to jog in a circle for 26 more seconds. I'm never going to cut it short.

I usually eat a salad for lunch and before a game since it keeps me feeling healthy and energized on the field. I love piling on the toppings: the more colorful the better! I usually do nuts, fruit and avocado, but I also mix up my creations with different toppings and lettuces.

I don't run on the treadmill, because there's no treadmill moving for you on the soccer field.

I sleep better on the road than I do at home. I'm used to sleeping in a million different hotels. I'm not home very often, so when I get home, I have things I want to do.

I'm not having to go outside and switch the role model hat on. It's me, and it's important for me to leave that legacy to help inspire younger players because I didn't have a role model growing up.

I want to be strong. I want to be able to hit people. I want people to be able to bounce off me. When I go out there and play, I play to intimidate people. If someone gets hit down by me, they're going to think twice about coming near me again.

If you're quiet, and you don't speak out, you're never going to get anything accomplished.

I've kept to myself, I've put my head down. I've gone to work. And I have felt undervalued.

I don't think anyone would say that the women on the United States national team are not great role models and ambassadors. Everywhere we go, we connect with fans, sign autographs, and represent our sport and federation with class.