66 Quotes by Oliver Kahn

The goalkeeper plays in a psychological position, and he’s dealing with mental things. I wanted to describe the things I’ve done wrong and, most of all, what I’ve done right, so that other people, including those in other professions, could learn from my experiences.

It took me a long time to realize that football isn’t martyrdom, but a game that’s enjoyable, and one in which getting better at it is supposed to be fun. Perhaps it would have been better if I had understood this as a young man.

It’s part of my game to occasionally send a message, one that may be unpopular to the outside world, but can be important for the team.

I’ve never really seen myself in the role of the victim.

I have always seen myself as an athlete. Of course, I made the mistake of unintentionally opening the door to my private life by just a crack. I wouldn’t do the same thing again. It has to be accepted that my private life is private, and if that isn’t the case, I have to do something about it.

The realization that you’re not always standing down there on the field merely to win, to be successful, was very liberating. One can be successful by helping the team, the other players. All of a sudden I felt the kind of empathy for people that I hadn’t felt before.

After a decade in a club it’s quite normal and necessary that you seek and take a new challenge.

I’m not the type who spends his free time in training camp playing with his Playstation or playing cards on trips. The other players thought it was odd: There he is, reading again.

It looked pretty wild, but I was actually in control of myself. I’ve never really injured anyone throughout my career.