Soccer AM

Le Saux: would address respect in the game

We all love football. But why?

The former England international is currently backing the joint initiative between The FA and Umbro to find the country's best five-a-side football team. For more information visit the FA's website...

I LOVE FOOTBALL...
My earliest memory of football is probably playing on the beach in Jersey. I used to play football all the time when I was growing up as a kid in Jersey and the beach was as good a football pitch as any really.

MY FOOTBALLING HERO IS...
John Robertson who played for Nottingham Forest. I admired him as a player because he was tremendously skilful. He wasn't the quickest player, but he just moved the ball so well and was very, very creative. He played in the Nottingham Forest team that one the European Cup, I think they won it two years running and he was tremendous.

MY FAVOURITE FOOTBALL GROUND WAS...
The place I loved was Wembley because I used to watch the cup finals and all the big games that were played there including the international games on Television, and that was the place that I wanted to grace one day.

MY FAVOURITE PIECE OF MEMORABILIA IS...
The thing I'm most proud of is my Jersey cap, which was awarded to me for playing for both the junior team and the senior team. I only played once for the senior team because then I left to become a professional footballer, but to get a cap playing for my Island against Guernsey was a huge occasion for me. To play in what's called the Moratti over there which is this annual event and to actually represent Jersey was very special.

So to go from that to eventually being good enough to play for England, I can't think that there are too many players that have caps from two different places.

IF I DIDN'T HAVE FOOTBALL I WOULD...
I think I probably would have gone into something to do wildlife and the environment because in Jersey there's a very famous conservational Zoo and I used to work there as a teenager, so I always had a passion for conservation and I love photography as well so I was looking at trying to combine those two things.

IF I COULD CHANGE ANYTHING I WOULD...
If I was an administrator within the game the one thing that I would be looking to do is to try and develop the discipline side of the sport. The relationship between the referees and the players and the respect levels between the players and the referees and the managers and the referees a bit more. I don't think it has been addressed fully and I think there is a lot of room for improvement there.

I LOVE FOOTBALL BECAUSE...
I think within a day or two of picking up a football when I was a kid I just felt this was something that I wanted to do and it just felt right. I think you can see players when they are natural with the ball, when the ball becomes an extension of there foot and it's just there and they've got it under control, so it's about the relationship that you have with the ball and the sport and I suppose that is why I love football.