"He is the equivalent to the Pope. People are devoted to him, but Francesco deserves it - he is a leader and is always able to express words of praise for his teammates."

"Can I become a symbol of Fiorentina? I dream of becoming the Viola’s version of Francesco Totti."

"I have so much respect for Francesco Totti. Considering what he represents at Roma, he is the captain of captains."

"I appreciate the presence of a leader like Totti. He is one of the best players in history. I feel lucky to play alongside him."

"Totti is an unattainable champions. It does not take long to realise that he is a real phenomenon for the things that he can do."

"Francesco Totti is a great champion and beyond description. I’m happy to be playing alongside him."

"My idols? I have several. Totti as well is someone I like. It is a pleasure to play against him now."

"I want to become Napoli’s Totti."

"I’d love to be the Francesco Totti of Juventus. I won’t make comparisons on role or history, but I hope to end my career with this jersey."

"Totti is great, at his age he still makes a difference, as Federer. I’d take him everywhere, even to dinner with me. He is really strong. If AS Roma won the Scudetto I would invite Totti for a ride with me."

"No one would have thought that Totti would have a career like this. But even from his debut you could see that he was destined to succeed. I have a great admiration for him. Look at the likes of Giggs, Gianfranco Zola, Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero – it is hard to believe that anyone can get to 40 years of age and keep playing, but Totti could. He is a boy who loves this city. He could have won more elsewhere, but he loves Rome."

"Del Piero is known for his sense of humour. He once joked that if Lippi does not convoke him to the World Cup in Germany, he would "run him over with his car and sink his damn boat"."

"After that, Alessandro Del Piero became my hero, I really admired him."

"It’s still surprising to me that Alessandro Del Piero has gone through his career without winning this trophy (the Ballon d'Or)."

"Let’s say he scored a goal a la Baggio, a la Maradona. He took the ball in midfield, dribbled 3-4 teammates of mine. He’s good, what can I say?"

"He (Del Piero) always comes to the training field with a smile for everyone, a comforting word for everyone. This is his greatness: humbleness... he’s a golden person."

"Del Piero is able to do certain things, that could seem extraordinary, but he does them like they were simple"

"Del Piero is my idol. When I arrived at Juventus and I was introduced to Alex, it was like touching the heavens with my finger"

"Alex is an example for all of us. He works hard in training without ever speaking out."

"Talking about the best 100 world footballers ever he says "Here he is, he is different from Zidane, he likes to play, he feels it in his soul; between he and the French (Zinedine Zidane), I stay with him.""

""Del Piero is a champion with extraordinary technical ability and wonderful characteristics. When he is selected he never disappoints. He is an example to us all." "He has great skills and intuitions that few other players have". "He is a captain in the real sense of the word"."

"Del Piero is the best Italian footballer."

"With his charm and charisma he has won us all, his creativity and magnificent talent have given us nothing more to ask for, and his free kicks, no comment"

"Even though Del Piero may be well into his 30s now, he remains one of the great players."

"I've met Ale at the Primavera. And he was already a phenomenon. He was so brave that we forced the coach to make him debut at the main team". "He has those abilities that only great stars have. And everyone, as soon as they saw him, said “This one will surely make it"

"Del Piero is a true genius"

"I believe in champions and Alex is a champion". "Del Piero is a player of very high quality and deserves his record". Because of having many strikers in the squad: "Sometimes I feel embarrassed at putting him on the bench."

"In my view he’s the best person I’ve met in this sport."

"He's the greatest player I've ever played against. He dribbled in an incredible way."

"He is an exceptional person and really doesn’t need to prove himself to anyone. Del Piero is a wonderful man and player."

"Del Piero is the best player in the history of Italian football. He is a person for who I do not only have a lot of respect, but a lot of affection as well."

"He is a world-class player who needs no introductions."

"During the Calciopoli scandal: "A true gentleman never leaves his lady.""

"He is considered to have a strong bond with the Juventus fans, once stating; "I'm proud to be a Juventino, to be a "bandiera", like you define me to be often, in reality I'm just a small part of a big black & white "bandiera" (flag) that grows with the years and if you look closely your name is part of it... To continue making this "bandiera" grow we need everybody: let's stay united.""

"Fabio being the first player presented has a special symbolic meaning, being that he is true number one with great leadership skills. We are convinced he will be a role model to help build a winning team. Upon arriving in Madrid, Cannavaro's first words demonstrated his pride, happiness, and satisfaction for joining such an admired Club."

"I can't choose just one! Real Madrid only has great players. Raul, David Beckham, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Ronaldo... The one that impressed me the most after having actually played together is Cannavaro. He's sturdy and lithe and his attitude when he faces a match is exceptional too. I think he's the best center-back in the world."

"Cannavaro has that unmistakable presence as a leader and in my impression, is exactly like that tough and cool-headed defense he shows on the pitch."

"Talking about Fabio's height is the same as talking about the fog in Milan.I have never felt that he is short when I play with him,because he can jump higher than anybody else. He is always good at heading. It doesn't make any sense talking about Cannavaro like that."

"I would have married Fabio anyway, no matter what was his job or where. It doesn't matter that he is a world known footballer. I love him because of his essence as a human being."

"Fabio Cannavaro was the best player of this World Cup."

"Cannavaro is having a fantastic World Cup. He is without question the strongest defender at this tournament and the absolute number one in the world."

"If Rio Ferdinand is worth £120,000 a week, Cannavaro is worth a hundred million a day."

"My worst vice is gluttony. I try to keep myself under control because I’m an athlete, but once a week I like to pig out and act like a normal person."

"Speaking of Buffon, I am very surprised that at his age he continues to play without ever failing. It is an example to be inspired by."

"The men can go away, the executives can go away, but what is really though in this society are the players who has been handed down the feel of winning, of being the absolute best, which isn't equal to any other team."

"In recent times Italy have been in a World Cup final every 12 years and I hope to still be there in 2018."

"I told myself before the game, 'he's made of skin and bones just like everyone else' - but I was wrong."