20 Questions with Alex Greenwood

1. What’s your earliest memory?
My earliest football memory would be playing on the school playground with the boys – I suspect that is the same answer a lot of the girls give you. Growing up in Liverpool, we would play in the streets and there was also a field at the back called The Green that we would meet up on. I would be playing before school, break times and after school. Any time I could get a kick of a football I would be playing football. I grew up in a really nice home and I have great memories with family but where I am from and the city I am from is very football based so everything in our lives revolved around football. That is still the way it is now. My life at home, living away from home, my partner (Sheffield United defender Jack O’Connell)…nearly every memory in my life is football!

2. If you could go back in time, would you? And where to?
That is an interesting question. If I relate it to football then yes, there are a few moments I would go back to if I was allowed more than one. Obviously making my debut for England (in the Cyprus Cup in 2014), if I could take my Mum with me and do it with her then I would do that. And winning the Champions League (with Lyon in the summer of 2020) is a moment that I could never describe. It was incredible. And then winning the FA Cup with Manchester City (in November 2020) was also unbelievable. Most of those memories, I didn’t really have my family with me for them which is a bit sad because of the circumstances but if I could take my Mum with me and do them all again then I would.

3. What do you like most about yourself?
It is quite a hard one to answer yourself. I think I am quite an honest person. I would like to think I am quite a trustworthy person. People can speak to me about things that they maybe feel they couldn’t speak to other people about. I would like to think I am someone who would sit there and listen to them if they needed someone. So it would probably be that.

4. What's you biggest achievement?
Obviously winning the Champions League was massive. Recently reaching 50 caps for my country was an honour for me and just playing for my country was a huge thing for me. And winning the FA Cup with Man City. In terms of achievements in football, I would say those.

5. What’s your worst habit?
I am not someone who bites nails or anything like that. You should probably ask my team-mates what my worst habit is, you know. I am not saying I haven’t got bad points obviously, but I don’t think I have something that I do all the time. I probably say stupid things at the wrong time.

6. What makes you most angry?
As I have got older, it takes a lot more to get me angry and your perception of life changes I suppose. But losing football matches makes me angry. But again, as I have got older, it is more disappointment rather than anger.

7. Who is your biggest influence?
Probably my Mum. My family as a whole actually. My sister, my dad, my boyfriend, they are all a massive part of my life for different reasons. But going right back to the start, it would probably be my mum because she has been there through everything for me and I probably wouldn’t be here today without her.

8. How do you react under pressure?
As I have got older, a little bit differently. I probably control my emotions a little bit more than I used to when I was younger. I would like to say I am a lot calmer than I was when I was younger. I probably react better…and I’m getting better!

9. When do you do feel most at ease?
Probably at home. And actually on a football pitch. At home after a win and I can just sit there and enjoy the moment is probably when I am at my happiest.

10. What do you dream about when you sleep?
I am not much of a dreamer. I can’t remember my dreams that often. Sometimes I wake up and think I had a dream last night but off the top of my head, I can’t remember the last time I had a dream.

11. Favourite phrase or word?
Erm…it is probably erm because I always say erm. It would probably be ‘That’s boss that’. Because of where I am from, I say ‘that is boss that’ to anything and everything even if it is not. I think I make other people say it as well because I am around Keira Walsh a lot and she now says ‘that is boss that’ even though she is not a scouser. I feel like I have had a win when she does that.

12. What reminds you of home?
It is probably a good home-cooked meal. Obviously everyone says their mum cooks the best meals but I think my Mum cooks the best meals. Honestly I think that feeling of being relaxed and no stress or no pressure is when I am most reminded of being at home, because when I am at home is when I am so content and relaxed.

13. Are you superstitious about anything?
I wouldn’t say I am very superstitious, but I am very routine. I like to do the same things before a game, the day before a game and have the same routine on the day of a game. If things change for whatever reason I wouldn’t tend to blame that change though if things didn’t go right but even day-to-day, I am very routine. For example with training, I would do things the same way as the day before. I think I just enjoy structure.

14. What makes you cry?
I can’t remember the last time I cried, that is really weird isn’t it? Seeing people I care about upset makes me upset. But I am not really one who cries at sad films and stuff. People talk about as they get older, they become more emotional but as I get older I am getting less emotional. 

15. One song that makes me feel good?
I revert back to Drake a lot. Drake is my go-to. I am a big lover of music so I could go from the 80s to Drake then back to Neil Diamond, to Kings of Leon, to Adele, to house music. I just love music.

16. Biggest obstacle?
I am probably my own worst critic if I am honest. I have a constant obsession with improving, with wanting to get better all the time. But as I have got older, I have managed to filter that a little bit better, separating football and life a little bit, but I am obsessed with football so my problem is football! 

17. Favourite place in the world?
Home is one. And then I absolutely love Dubai. Me and my partner go there at any opportunity we get. We have a place there so we would like to spend more time there than we do. But my home and my Mum’s home and then holiday destination is Dubai.

18. Most valuable possession?
My medals, of course.

19. Worst fear?
Now this is a weird one you know. I am scared of getting eaten by a crocodile. I swear down. I have no reason to be because we don’t have crocodiles in this country but I have always had a fear of crocodiles and I don’t know what it is. I have had it since I was young. I have said to my Mum ‘what is it about crocodiles that I hate so much’ and she said ‘I couldn’t tell you. You have just always feared them’. When we go to America, some of the girls will say that there are crocodiles around and they will be walking to the coffee shop and I will be getting a taxi. Honestly it scares me. I don’t usually tell people this you know. It is a weird one.

20. How would you like to be remembered?
I would like to be remembered as someone who was successful but I would like to be remembered as someone who gave everything to the game. Someone who gave 100 per cent every day and tried to change the game for the better, did good things and was a good person.