The Christmas schedule was never something I found to be a burden on my life or career. It was always something that was just a given, that you got used to.
When I was playing I didn't take much notice of the fact players in Spain and Germany had time off. I just always knew that when December came along it was time to really knuckle down on recovery.
The games come thick and fast and you don't really train. You're always just recovering and there's a lot of focus on eating the right foods, getting enough sleep, and perhaps doing more gym work instead of being out on the training pitch.