--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Always, even with the U17s in Spain…" description: "\"Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I always enjoy having the ball at my feet.\" —..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg" --- # Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from… ![“Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I always enjoy having the ball at my feet.” quote by David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg) > “Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I always enjoy having the ball at my feet.” [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Emphasizes building play from defense and valuing ball possession for development. **In simple terms:** Play from the back and enjoy having the ball. Key Takeaway Focus on defensive build‑up and ball control. Themes football strategy development Mood focused analytical Type tactical motivational When to use this quote - training sessions - match play - youth development Key Concepts possession defensive play team tactics Questions to Reflect On - How does playing from the back improve a team's confidence? - What risks arise from too much defensive focus? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on defense may limit attacking creativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Play](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/play/) ## Related quotes > [For me, nothing bad can happen on a football pitch. You could be growing up in chaos, everything could be going crazy around you,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcelo/for-me-nothing-bad-can-happen-on-a-football-pitch-you-could-be/) [Marcelo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcelo/) > [I compliment Kramer perfectly. We both put in a lot of legwork, win many balls, and we're comfortable with the ball at our feet.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/granit-xhaka/i-compliment-kramer-perfectly-we-both-put-in-a-lot-of-legwork-win/) [Granit Xhaka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/granit-xhaka/) > [I need to have the ball at my feet. That's when I know anything is possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddy-adu/i-need-to-have-the-ball-at-my-feet-that-s-when-i-know-anything-is/) [Freddy Adu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddy-adu/) > [As a kid, a ball was always by my feet. I didn't have any other passion. It was only football, and the sacrifices made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-almiron/as-a-kid-a-ball-was-always-by-my-feet-i-didn-t-have-any-other-passion/) [Miguel Almiron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-almiron/) > [I love watching Messi with the ball at his feet. He scores goals and everything else.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ronaldo/i-love-watching-messi-with-the-ball-at-his-feet-he-scores-goals-and/) [Ronaldo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ronaldo/) > [I was always comfortable with the ball at my feet, and this helps me during games. I think it's a natural talent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ederson/i-was-always-comfortable-with-the-ball-at-my-feet-and-this-helps-me/) [Ederson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ederson/) > [I always had the ball at my feet. Always. Always. Always. And if I was going to pass it to you, well, I had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joao-felix/i-always-had-the-ball-at-my-feet-always-always-always-and-if-i-was/) [Joao Felix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joao-felix/) > [At the age of five or six I just used to kick the ball with both feet. I wasn't very good to start with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/filo-tiatia/at-the-age-of-five-or-six-i-just-used-to-kick-the-ball-with-both-feet/) [Filo Tiatia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/filo-tiatia/) > [Ever since I've been able to walk, I've always had a ball at my feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steph-houghton/ever-since-i-ve-been-able-to-walk-i-ve-always-had-a-ball-at-my-feet/) [Steph Houghton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steph-houghton/) > [Watch me, and I only really like the ball into feet. I don't like running in behind so much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-grealish/watch-me-and-i-only-really-like-the-ball-into-feet-i-don-t-like/) [Jack Grealish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-grealish/) > [He's a wizard with his feet and is blessed with a gift for scoring goals. His best quality is his speed while the ball…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lilian-thuram/he-s-a-wizard-with-his-feet-and-is-blessed-with-a-gift-for-scoring/) [Lilian Thuram](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lilian-thuram/) > [If you look at Dele, he does everything. He wants the ball into feet. Sometimes he'll run in behind; sometimes he'll get the ball…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-grealish/if-you-look-at-dele-he-does-everything-he-wants-the-ball-into-feet/) [Jack Grealish](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-grealish/) > [I can keep the ball and pass it, and I've always felt comfortable with the ball at my feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-crouch/i-can-keep-the-ball-and-pass-it-and-i-ve-always-felt-comfortable-with/) [Peter Crouch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-crouch/) > [When we have a ball at our feet, we footballers are delighted, but what happens behind the scenes is not always all that pretty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paulo-dybala/when-we-have-a-ball-at-our-feet-we-footballers-are-delighted-but-what/) [Paulo Dybala](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paulo-dybala/) > [At Barca we trained every day with the ball. I hardly even took a step running without a ball at my feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-messi/at-barca-we-trained-every-day-with-the-ball-i-hardly-even-took-a-step/) [Lionel Messi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-messi/) ## More by David de Gea > [I came to United to win trophies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/i-came-to-united-to-win-trophies/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [It's normal to have early difficulties when you get a new manager with a new concept.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/it-s-normal-to-have-early-difficulties-when-you-get-a-new-manager/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [You have to be as strong when things go wrong, but I don't get nervous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/you-have-to-be-as-strong-when-things-go-wrong-but-i-don-t-get-nervous/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [The fans of Manchester United are one of the best in the world. I felt the support of them from the first day, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/the-fans-of-manchester-united-are-one-of-the-best-in-the-world-i-felt/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [Football is cruel at times; it's difficult. When things go well, you're very good, and when they go badly, well, it's awful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/football-is-cruel-at-times-it-s-difficult-when-things-go-well-you-re/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [I like watching films, going out for a bite to eat and drink, and some shopping.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/i-like-watching-films-going-out-for-a-bite-to-eat-and-drink-and-some/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [Even though I didn't win any titles, I have positive feelings about my first season at Manchester United. I have learned a lot, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/even-though-i-didn-t-win-any-titles-i-have-positive-feelings-about-my/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [Being the Manchester United goalkeeper is one of the most difficult jobs in football when you look at the size of the club and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/being-the-manchester-united-goalkeeper-is-one-of-the-most-difficult/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [To be fair, when you are really young, you don't think about the future too much. You just want to play with your friends.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/to-be-fair-when-you-are-really-young-you-don-t-think-about-the-future/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [I train every day to be the best goalkeeper in the world; that is my aim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/i-train-every-day-to-be-the-best-goalkeeper-in-the-world-that-is-my/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [I'm a big fan of the PlayStation, so I spend quite a bit of time doing that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/i-m-a-big-fan-of-the-playstation-so-i-spend-quite-a-bit-of-time-doing/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [I have worked hard in the gym lifting heavy weights and doing a lot of exercises.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/i-have-worked-hard-in-the-gym-lifting-heavy-weights-and-doing-a-lot/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [After a great save or a mistake by a defender, I prefer not to shout on him; I prefer to wait and say it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/after-a-great-save-or-a-mistake-by-a-defender-i-prefer-not-to-shout/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [It is unbelievable, the fans in China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/it-is-unbelievable-the-fans-in-china/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) > [It's unbelievable: the fans of Manchester United are one of the best in the world, and I feel the support of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/it-s-unbelievable-the-fans-of-manchester-united-are-one-of-the-best/) [David de Gea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) [Explore all 76 David de Gea quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/) ## More Always quotes > [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/) [Isa Briones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isa-briones/) > [I always thought if I was born 2000 years earlier, I would be a monk, probably carving a monastery or some giant pantheon buildings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenova-chen/i-always-thought-if-i-was-born-2000-years-earlier-i-would-be-a-monk/) [Jenova Chen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenova-chen/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/) [William Regal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-regal/) > [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/) [Kelli O'Hara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelli-o-hara/) > [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/) [Austin Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/austin-rivers/) > [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/) [Maria Brink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-brink/) > [Mythology is something that always has opportunities to explore. 'It' has been on Earth for millions of years. He's been in contact with humans…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-muschietti/mythology-is-something-that-always-has-opportunities-to-explore-it/) [Andy Muschietti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-muschietti/) > [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/) [Robert B. Weide](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-b-weide/) > [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/) [Mandy Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-rose/) > [I've always been of the idea that is doesn't really matter where you are geographically - with 'Lonerism,' we made half the album in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-parker/i-ve-always-been-of-the-idea-that-is-doesn-t-really-matter-where-you/) [Kevin Parker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-parker/) > [It's very easy to fool yourself that you're working, you know, when you're really not working very hard. I mean, I'm very lazy. So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-caro/it-s-very-easy-to-fool-yourself-that-you-re-working-you-know-when-you/) [Robert Caro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-caro/) > [Whether it was Little League or playing with your brothers or sisters, that was always a problem. If I would lose - because I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cal-ripken-jr/whether-it-was-little-league-or-playing-with-your-brothers-or-sisters/) [Cal Ripken, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cal-ripken-jr/) > [I always say if you put someone from a small town into a big city for ten years, then when they go back, they'll…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-colter/i-always-say-if-you-put-someone-from-a-small-town-into-a-big-city-for/) [Mike Colter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-colter/) > [Bayern is always a team that can win the Champions League title in Europe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lothar-matthaus/bayern-is-always-a-team-that-can-win-the-champions-league-title-in/) [Lothar Matthaus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lothar-matthaus/) Browse all 36,048 Always quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I always enjoy having the ball at my feet.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David de Gea" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s-we-play-from-the-back-and-we/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Always" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s-we-play-from-the-back-and-we/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/24a/david-de-gea-8998_always_always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s_180497.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Always, even with the U17s in Spain, U19s, we play from the back, and we try to improve on that a lot. So I…” — David de Gea", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David de Gea", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-de-gea/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Always, even with the U17s in...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s-we-play-from-the-back-and-we/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-de-gea/always-even-with-the-u17s-in-spain-u19s-we-play-from-the-back-and-we/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```