I normally get up at 6.45, because that’s when my son, Leeyan, wakes up. I like to let Nadege have a lie-in, so I’ll fetch Leeyan from his cot and take him downstairs for his milk. Now he’s 17 months he’s running around the place, and he loves it if I get out his toys and play with him. When Nadege comes down with our daughter, Lea, I’ll disappear for a shower before joining them for breakfast. I usually have orange juice and a couple of croissants, pain au chocolat, or toast and strawberry jam.

I’m about a 15-minute drive from the Arsenal training ground in north London, and I like to leave at 9 and be in a bit early so I can spend 20 minutes answering fans’ letters. It’s important to me, because I know how much we owe them for their loyalty — they stick with you through thick and thin. Training’s Monday to Friday and starts at 10.

After a 15-to-20-minute warm-up, our manager will chat to the team about tactics, about the last match, the team we’re about to play… then it’s straight into a game with the whole team.

Of course, being the captain of Arsenal is an honour. I’m following in the footsteps of some incredible players — Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira, Tony Adams… It’s also a huge responsibility. Most of our players are younger than me and I want them to realise they have this amazing opportunity to do something incredible this season. When I walk onto the pitch, I know, for the next 90 minutes, in front of 60,000-80,000 people, I have to give everything of myself — physically, mentally and emotionally. I expect the same of them too.

I’m very passionate about football. What footballer isn’t? I think every player who walks out onto the pitch is emotional — it just depends whether you can control it or not. Sometimes I can, sometimes I can’t. I don’t mind if people criticise me. You just have to be strong about that, especially when, like me, you’re a defender, because you’ve only got to make one mistake and that’s it.

At the end of the day, I know what I have to do as captain, what I have to do as a defender, and I know what we have to do as a team: we go out to win.

When training finishes at 12.30, I have physio on the muscles around my groin — I have two bad injuries from last season. After that I’ll do weight exercises on my arms, chest and shoulders. Then I’ll shower and have lunch in the canteen. Usually it’s a tomato salad or soup, then grilled chicken, lamb or a pasta. I’m lucky, I have a fast metabolism, so I don’t have to watch my calorie intake as much as some do. Having said that, I’m 81 kilos, and if I want to be at my fittest I need to keep to that. One kilo heavier and I don’t run as well, and, as any footballer will tell you, stamina is crucial.

If I haven’t got anything in the diary for the afternoon, I head home. If it’s a nice day, I take the children to the park. I speak to them in French, and Nadege, whose English is better than mine, talks to them in English. Leeyan’s at the age where he’s not only saying his first words, but is having his first kick of the ball, while Lea loves it if Arsenal are playing at home and she can come and watch me play. She’s the same age I was when I fell in love with the game.

I grew up in Villeneuve-la-Garenne, a suburb of Paris. My parents had moved there from Guadeloupe, in the West Indies. My father was a plumber and my mother worked in a post office. It was actually my uncle, Henry, who was a footballer in the south of France, who got me started. I must have been six when he gave me my first ball. And that was it. I was hooked. If I wasn’t playing in the streets, I was kicking balls against the bedroom wall — which annoyed my parents, not to mention the neighbours.

Then, when I was 13, I was offered a place at France’s top football academy. But the very same week, my parents decided to go back to Guadeloupe and told me I was too young to stay behind on my own. But I pleaded with them. I said it was my one chance to make it as a footballer. Eventually, they gave in. After that, I knew I had to prove myself. To be honest, I wasn’t one of the best in the academy. I had to work much harder, be that much more focused than anyone else. I was never complacent. And I’m not now. I don’t understand it when I see the best players in a team staying behind to work overtime and the young players going home.

Dinner is between 7 and 7.30. I’m lucky that Nadege not only does all the cooking, but is a great cook. One night it might be a spicy West Indian dish, like colombo, which has chicken, potatoes and carrots; another night it might be a Moroccan dish with couscous, or an African dish with white fish and banana. From time to time, Nadege and I will leave the kids with the nanny and eat out. We met in France and we’ve known each other since we were teenagers — we’re hoping to get married next year.

I like to be in bed by midnight. I’m a good sleeper, but there are nights, especially before a big game, when I can’t stop thinking about what I have to do. I’m 30 now and I’ve already had many proud moments in my career, like being chosen to represent France in the World Cup, then playing for Chelsea, and being where I am now. Football dreams do come true. But of course they’re all the sweeter when you’re holding a trophy in your hands.

Interview by Ria Higgins. Portrait by Muir Vidler

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