Kevin-Prince Boateng has matured as the years have passed. The Barcelona player, on loan from Sassuolo, has admitted as much in an interview with La Vanguardia.

The German-born Ghanaian international explains that “I was crazy when I was young, I had money and I was the boss of the neighborhood.”

And he says he’s come to Camp Nou with the dream of staying for longer than six months.

Here are Boateng’s best quotes:

Playing for Barça: “I have changed teams a lot and this opportunity’s arrived near the end of my career. Playing for this team is the most exciting thing that can happen to you in football. Every kid dreams of playing for Barça once. At my age, I’m a little old (31), it’s a dream to play here.”

Objective: “I am here to help. When the manager decided that I am playing, I will give my all. I am training well and bonding with the team because I want to stay beyond these six months.”

Messi: “He’s incredible. Honestly: playing against him is really hard, but to see him play now on the pitch is magic. He’s like Ronaldinho. He wins games on his own. He could play in a team where the other 10 players defend and do everything on his own.”

Youthful sins: “When I was young I was crazy. At 18, in my neighborhood, I was the boss because I had money. Then I had a kid and you see that if you don’t mature you can’t play for teams like Milan or Barça. They don’t choose you. You can play well but if your head doesn’t work you can play for these teams. I had to change my attitude and character.”

Maturing: “Now I have my chef and I am aware if you eat well and healthily you can prolong your career. When you’re young, you think that the money is always going to be there. If you don’t play well, it doesn’t matter because you have cash and your ‘friends’ tell you that you’re a star.”