Athlete

Arsene Wenger gives youngsters opportunities, and if he thinks that you're good enough, he'll play you.

I grew up watching the Olympics and did some athletics for my school, winning the Welsh pentathlon championship.

I hate being in the gym.

You need to stay in that one position to get consistency that way. Different things are going through your mind when you are playing out right to when you are playing through the middle, so you can't get through that routine of where you want to play.

I always had games on Saturdays as I was growing up.

All I want to do is play football.

Competition is to be expected at a club like Arsenal.

We're professional footballers, so we have to go out there and perform as best we can and try and get the results that we want.

You have to give 100 percent in the Champions League, as you're up against the biggest teams.

It's quite strange looking down the list of players who've won the young player award in the past and then thinking I'm in there too now. There's some great names like Ryan Giggs, Craig Bellamy - and I can't miss out Chris Gunter - and it's a big boost to be included.

Having the chance to win a gold medal doesn't come around very often.

You have to take each game as it comes and not get ahead of yourself.

Ever since I was a boy, I have wanted to be a professional footballer and to captain my country one day.

When you're wide, you're taught to try and get in at the far post so the ball doesn't go straight across, but from that central position, you can use your instinct where to go.

The main factor in joining Arsenal was meeting with Arsene Wenger and to hear what his plans were for me.

We're professional footballers, so we have to go out there and perform as best we can and try and get the results that we want.

Obviously, I was disappointed to lose the captaincy. I was very proud to be captain of my country.

I live for football, and my real passion is just to go out there and express myself and show everybody what I'm capable of doing. It's what I've always known since I was a kid.

I used to pretend to be Ryan Giggs.

Hopefully I can be one of the best midfielders in the world. That's what drives me on: to try and achieve that and to try and go on and win many things.