Primera Liga correspondent Andy Mitten names his Best XI of the Spanish half-term.
Goalkeeper
Jan Oblak, Atletico Madrid
Defender
Dani Alves, Barcelona
Defender
Diego Godin, Atletico Madrid
Defender
Shkodran Mustafi, Valencia
Defender
Marcelo, Real Madrid
Midfielder
Luka Modric, Real Madrid
Midfielder
Sergio Busquets, Barcelona
Midfielder
Gareth Bale, Real Madrid
Midfielder
Lucas Perez, Deportivo la Coruna
Forward
Luis Suarez, Barcelona
Forward
Neymar, Barcelona
Coach
Luis Enrique, Barcelona
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
