Top 45 Ali Krieger Quotes

In 2005, I would have never guessed that I was at risk for a pulmonary embolism. I was 21 years-old, playing college soccer and just living the dream.

This is something I’ve dreamed of for a long, long time – to play in a World Cup.

In college, girls would come up to me: ‘I want your calves.’ It just makes me laugh. I guess people pay a lot of money to have the types of bodies athletes have.

I love to do lunges because I don’t want my butt to start sagging. I say that to my trainer all the time; he thinks I’m nuts.

Playing for the Washington Spirit, the 2013 season was one of the most difficult I have ever experienced.

I am super close with my brother. He is my ultimate role model. Growing up and having a family break apart, you know, when my parents divorced and things like that, it was a struggle, and all we had was each other at the time.

Germany is where I had to become a true professional. They play in big games when they are young. We could model some of our soccer system after what they do.

Personally, I always try to focus on the little things in my game. As a defender and attacking outside back, I continuously work on completing passes, not being too predictable going forward into the attack, good services into the box, good positioning and footwork.

When you’re at the highest point of your career at the highest level in your sport, any moment that you have these setbacks and injuries is devastating. You have to start back from zero, and you never know if you’re going to get back to where you once were.

It is cliched, but you have to beat the best to be the best.

I have always dreamt of going to an Olympics and watching these incredible athletes and being motivated and inspired to want to be successful in my own sport.

It doesn’t matter: any weight, shape or form or however your body is, you want to be proud of it.

I love kids, and I really liked the idea of getting involved with something that was all about giving kids the opportunity to walk, run, or maybe even play soccer someday.

I drink coffee 30 minutes before I want to nap. I think that really helps.

Everyone makes fun of my calves. They are so big. I don’t really even like them, I don’t really want them as big as they are, but I have no choice.

Every tournament‘s different.

As a young girl, football is where I met the people who, to this day, are my best friends. It is also where I began to learn about the important relationship between hard work, teamwork, and fun.

My mantra is ‘healthy body, healthy mind.’

I surround myself with good people who make me feel great and give me positive energy.

It’s a dream that we, as women footballers, get to play in the same stadium as the men.

I have to remember I am a defender first and do my job there first and foremost.

I feel fortunate to be a part of a football community that includes leaders who recognize the power of sport to make a difference and who, like so many of my coaches, are defined not only by their knowledge but by their ability to bring out the best in every member of their teams.

I have fallen a few times, and each time, I have gotten up and grown as a person and looked at things a little differently.

I’m the type of player that doesn’t like to play on full stomach.

When I was 6 years old, I played on a coed indoor team. We were called the Cosmos. And then, after that, when I was 7, I played on an all-girls club team.

I do believe that everything happens for a reason.

Because I don’t like to play on a full stomach, I try to eat a bigger meal in the morning and less throughout the day leading up to the game.

My dad has been my coach since I was seven years old – from 7 to 18 is when he coached my club team – and so it was always in the family. He introduced me to soccer at a young age and also kind of molded me into a good player at a young age, too. Which then I grew to love the game and be as passionate as he was.

Being a World Cup winner was a dream come true.

In 2003, being Virginia Player of the Year was an amazing feeling because I think that was the moment I realized I could actually, really go far in my sport, and I was actually, really good at something. At that moment, I knew that I could play at a high level.

Surround yourself with good people; surround yourself with positivity and people who are going to challenge you to make you better.

I’m proud of my thighs because they’ve gotten me to where I am today and give me the power that I have to play my best.

My dad has always played and coached, so that’s what I knew. I played other sports but always turned toward soccer and had the same love for it as my father. They never forced me to play; I always wanted to. I was always around it.

I’m grateful that I got a good education and to have all the people I have around me.

On game days, I’m pretty boring: I like to rest and watch TV with my legs up so I’m not on my feet too much before the match.

I loved Mia Hamm, and I really looked up to Julie Foudy as well, who is one of my mentors.

It’s always tough to play against teams that bunker or ‘park the bus‘ inside the 18-yard box, but we always try to focus on our game and how we can overcome the obstacles that the game presents to continue to get better and score goals.

I always get made fun of by my teammates for my huge calves, but I’m like, ‘they make me strong and fast!’

I don’t think there’s any disappointment in my career because everything that maybe didn’t go my way was a learning experience.

I try and be super vocal on the field because that’s what we need, and that’s what I want to do.

It’s really difficult when you don’t see much of a team and you’re not familiar with how they play.

I want to get good enough so I can play in Mia Hamm’s golf tournament for her foundation and have an event of my own someday. I’m so competitive, I don’t want to go and just pretend I’m a good golfer.

If the spaces open up in the attack, then of course I’m willing to take it because I love to get involved; I love to get crosses in. I love to do combinations and just bring a different aspect to our game.

The leadership of Christine Rampone goes without saying. She is the definition of a what a leader is.

Lifting isn’t my favorite thing, so I have to keep it fun and do exercises that I really enjoy.