How are you staying physically active and maintaining fitness during the winter break?
I will go to the gym and I also walk my dog several times a day so that gives me about 10k steps a day on its own. I had a small throat surgery which forced me to rest for a few days though.
Are there specific aspects of your game that you're focusing on improving during this break?
Whatever small improvements that are possible, I watch the recorded games back to see what I did right and wrong and try to learn from it.
How do you balance relaxation and staying in peak performance mode during the winter break?
Tough one, as you need to make sure you don’t get too lazy and during winter - eating a lot can be difficult when marrying into a Latino family and spending Christmas with them, but as long as I do the extra workouts I am good! It’s nice to take some time away from the training and spend more time with my wife, our dog and the family.
Any favourite winter activities or hobbies you enjoy to unwind off the field?
Playing video games is a nice warm indoor activity for the winter, I’d love to do something like snowboarding but I didn’t think too much about it this year, more focus on relaxation!
Have you set any personal goals for the second half of the season?
Maintain the high standards set in the first half, stay as fit as possible and play as many games as possible after missing most games last year through injury. I’d love to turn our draws into wins, and keep up the great team spirit we’ve created this season, whatever ways I can help improve as the captain.
How do you adapt your training routine to the different weather conditions during the winter months?
Simple enough in a warm gym but when we train in the cold you just have to wrap up and make sure you put in the effort and keep moving
Are there any particular matches or opponents you're looking forward to facing after the break?
Probably just those who we should have beat on the day but otherwise just looking forward to getting back on the pitch with the guys.