As much as physical attributes and technical skill form a part of a football player’s armoury, to get to the very top mental strength is also a pre-requisite.
It has to be, because when things sometimes don’t go as planned, resilience is required to bounce back from the disappointment.
Take Edinson Cavani’s situation at Manchester United by way of example.
The Uruguayan enjoyed a superb campaign in his first year at Old Trafford, scoring 17 goals and providing six assists in 39 games per transfermarkt.
Form that earned him an extra year’s contract with the Red Devils.
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Then along comes Cristiano Ronaldo to not only take Cavani’s No.7 shirt, but also his spot in the starting XI.
It’s a decision that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will almost certainly have made in the best interests of the team and El Matador, far from bleating about it, is approaching the situation as only he knows how.
“In football, you have to always be ready. It’s one of the keys at the top level,” he said to El Observador, cited by the Mirror.
“Sometimes you play more, sometimes you play less, managers make decisions, but that doesn’t stop the work to always be competitive.
“The league has just started and I have needed to be, not quite like last year, but I’m there to be a part of it.
“Those [Ronaldo’s arrival] are things that happen, a lot of debate is created, but football is football and you don’t have to turn it around too much, it’s not because one or the other is there.
“The important thing is to be prepared for when it’s your turn, you always want to play, he wants to be there forever, but that is not going to change my way of thinking or acting.”
That will surely be music to Solskjaer’s ears.