I am, of course, delighted but there was never any doubt about Sol staying.

If somebody stamps on your head in that way, you wouldn't say, 'Thank you very much, can I turn the other cheek'. Only Jesus Christ did that.

It is one of my biggest regrets that Niall Quinn was not here during my time... I felt he was an intelligent player. It would have been a good combination with Thierry Henry. What I like with Quinn is if you look at the player who played next to him, he always scored 40 goals because he had a hand for his head and he just put the ball where you were. He was a team player. A top-class player makes other players look good and he had that player.

One of the things I discovered in Japan was from watching sumo wrestling. At the end you can never tell who has won the fight, and who has lost, because they do not show their emotion because it could embarrass the loser. It is unbelievable. That is why I try to teach my team politeness. It is only here in England that everybody pokes their tongue out when they win.

Sometimes now, when I watch continental games on television, I'm a bit bored. I ask, 'where is the intensity?'

It's like a child who is used to having ice cream whenever he wants. When it doesn't come when he asks he tends to get confused and nervous.

You cannot play for Arsenal and give up, no matter what the score is.