Stretching, which I do for five to 10 minutes before and after a match, is so important in general when it comes to prolonging your career and staying injury-free.

Your core is so important. Get your endurance up. Running and long-distance. Swimming is good as well. Important to have a good core, utilize the proper exercises to strengthen it. It goes out to the rest of your body and makes sure your body is right.

Stretching, which I do for five to 10 minutes before and after a match, is so important in general when it comes to prolonging your career and staying injury-free.

In the morning, I work on my core stability and do some work with the exercise bands. Sometimes I do some upper body and a little bit of leg weights to get warm and ready for training. And then I'm out on the pitch.

Sometimes something as simple as going for a 20-minute jog on any given day is important. Keeps your body moving and legs from getting stiffened up from doing high-intensity workouts during the week.

In all honesty, as you grow older, you understand how important it is to give everything in every workout, training session and match. When you're younger, you think game and practice are different. The sooner you understand they aren't, the better.

The World Cup only comes around once every four years and is the absolute pinnacle of our sport. It is something we dream about as players. It is a reason why many of us started playing this game. I know myself, my teammates will be focused on what's ahead and what's at stake.