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“I am just technical direction. Full stop. OK?”

The week’s sport, and sports journalism, in quotes, featuring man management tips from Carlo Ancelotti, Sir Alex Ferguson and Shane Warne, Michel Platini on investigative journalism, and John Terry on injuries and captaincy

Carlo Ancelotti: not in control?

“You have to compare me with Ferguson, it’s a different position. It is different because Ferguson has total control of the team. I am just technical direction. Full stop. OK?” Carlo Ancelotti, feeling undermined as manager at champions Chelsea after three defeats in four league matches.

“The minute a footballer becomes more important than the manager, your club is dead. The history of this club goes right down the drain. I am the most important man at Manchester United. It has to be that way” Sir Alex Ferguson makes his view of “playerpower” and agents quite clear.

“The way they have treated him is ordinary and he has been made to feel as if he is a bit of an outcast. KP might be the walking ego and can rub people up the wrong way. He does have an attitude. But he has to be made to feel important and like he is the man” Shane Warne criticises England’s treatment of Kevin Pietersen ahead of the Ashes.

“He loves having the spotlight on him. It brings out the best in him. Some people, it makes them freeze, and he is the exact opposite” Alex Swann on his younger brother, England spin bowler Graeme.

“This is a good time to start worrying. Things have gone much too smoothly thus far. No fuss, no dramas, no crippling injuries. And yet … this is Australia” Patrick Collins expresses his pre-Ashes fears in the Mail on Sunday.

“Oh God. I work for the Daily Express and there’s going to be a royal wedding…”  Matt Law speaks for many in his Twitter feed @MattLawExpress.

“Did a 90 minutes run this morning, it was great. No pain in my knee and relieved to know that I can continue what I love doing” Haile Gebrselassie, the marathon world record-holder, announces, via Twitter, that he has reversed his decision to retire.

“I’m incredibly disappointed with the timing of what the BBC seem to be proposing with Panorama. To do it the week before the vote – I don’t think think it’s patriotic” Andy Anson, chief executive of England’s 2018 World Cup bid.

“I don’t think it’s a problem. These investigations are just people doing their job, no?” Michel Platini, head of UEFA, on British media’s investigations into the running of international football.

“In doing what it did the newspaper stood up for fair play in world football, for fair play at the heart of FIFA, for fair play in the World Cup bidding process” Keir Radnedge, chairman of AIPS’s football commission, after Sunday Times investigations led to suspensions of FIFA executive members.

“The media must not drop the ball now. If there is to be any hope of FIFA being reformed, then this is the chance. The messengers must get the message across” Roy Greenslade.

“The last time I played fit? Maybe five years, maybe more, I can’t really remember. If you can take an anti-inflammatory and struggle through, you do. A lot of players would tell you that, and it happens most weeks” John Terry reveals the deep-seated, long-term nature of his, and other players’, injuries.

“Give up booze for this? Andy Carroll could have sunk 10 pints in one of the many Wembley bars last night and still made as much of a contribution as he managed here. Hell, at least he would have enjoyed himself on his England debut” Matt Lawton‘s match report on the abject 2-1 defeat to France.

Insult added to injury: Gerrard limps off at Wembley

“There were obviously circumstances last night which came together to result in Steven playing for a bit longer than we’d hoped, which is disappointing, but there’s nothing we can do about that now” Dr Peter Brukner, Liverpool’s head of sports medicine, adopts a conciliatory tone after one of his staff Tweeted that England had been “completely amateurish” over the use of Steven Gerrard in the France game. Liverpool now stands to receive £500,000 in compensation from the FA for the hamstring injury.

“I always seem to be the last resort” Peter Crouch, who came off the bench to score for England, his 22nd goal in 42 internationals.

“If I have to hear those chants every time, you can’t go forward like that. I leave others to do the judgement” Mario Balotelli after again being subjected to racist abuse from his own fans when playing for Italy.

“These players need air bags” Miles Harrison in rugby commentary for Sky on the teak-hard tackling of the Pacific islanders in England’s match against Samoa.

“It frustrates me – and I know many other editors feel the same – that a lot of the young people leaving so-called university journalism degree courses are totally not suited for coming into newspapers” Derek Tucker, the outgoing editor of Aberdeen’s Press and Journal, speaking at the Society of Editors Conference.

“I accepted it. I said to Fabio I would continue to train and play exactly as I had before, then we shook hands and that was it. I’m not saying it was a good day… the only time I felt disappointed was during the next game against Egypt, which was a friendly, and the armband got passed around between five or six players. I just felt, ‘OK, I’ve been stripped of the captaincy, but don’t take the piss out of me'” John Terry on his reaction to losing the England captaincy.

“Glamorgan have effectively dismissed me by removing the captaincy from me, recruiting a new post above Matthew Maynard and me, recruiting a new overseas player and captain in Alviro Petersen. All of this without consultation or prior notification with me. This has rendered my position at the club untenable” James Dalrymple‘s resignation letter, as he, Maynard and club president Peter Walker leave the county.