Marvin Bartley happy with Livingston’s busy festive schedule

Livingston midfielder Marvin Bartley will never complain about a heavy festive schedule.

Livi host Ross County on Saturday in the first of three games in nine days.

Bartley is happy to be professional while others outside the game are letting their hair down after working hard in non-league football before earning his big move to Bournemouth at the age of 21.

The 33-year-old former Burnley, Leyton Orient and Hibernian player said: “I love football.

“I came into the game relatively late in age so I have done the other side of it and had a real job so to speak. I’m a professional footballer because I love doing what I do and playing games is what I am here for.

“You get stuff out of training but playing in the games is what you really get excited about, so the busy period for me is really a positive.

“If you’re winning games, you don’t feel tired. It’s amazing how your body reacts when you are not losing games, and then if you lose four or five games on the bounce all of a sudden you feel really tired.

“So that has to be our mindset going into it, we need to look after ourselves away from the football club. Eat the right things and rest and stay hydrated.”

Thank you for reading 5 articles this month* Join now for unlimited access

Enjoy your first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription

Join now for unlimited access

Try first month for just £1 / $1 / €1

FourFourTwo Staff

FourFourTwo was launched in 1994 on the back of a World Cup that England hadn’t even qualified for. It was an act of madness… but it somehow worked out. Our mission is to offer our intelligent, international audience access to the game’s biggest names, insightful analysis... and a bit of a giggle. We unashamedly love this game and we hope that our coverage reflects that.