Some smashes have been timed at more than 250 mph, so you get less than a second to react. People who see a professional badminton match up close are always shocked at the speed.

I'm lucky in that I can't see myself doing an office job every day. I'm lucky that I can play my sport and go around the world without too much to worry about outside that. I think it's good to be happy with what you're doing.

I've got quite a good poker face. I'm known for being able to keep my emotions very much in check: no one knows how I'm feeling. I can be winning or losing but keep it very much the same.

I was quite short and chubby until I was 14, when I shot up.

We've got to understand what wins and what loses for us. What's our formula? For us, it might not be flashy. It might be boring football, but it works for us.

I've felt a little tired, but I'm only 24. I love playing football. That's my job and that's what I love doing.

Involvement in my kids' sports teams is something I have made time for over the years. I've also been able to coach all three of them in baseball and basketball, something that has strengthened our bonds and given me indescribable joy. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

The Champions League was something very distant for us. I grew up in a very small town with 50,000 inhabitants, and it was a way of being able to watch my idols or people I admired play football on television.