Interpersonal coordination of opposing player dyads during attacks performed in official football matches

The purpose of this study was to characterise the interpersonal coordination between opponent players during offensive sequences in official matches and to verify if offensive sequences ended in shots to goal present different coordination patterns when compared than those that ended in defensive tackles. A total of 580 offensive sequences occurred during matches resulting in shots to goal (n = 172) or defensive tackles (n = 408) were analysed. The bidimensional coordinates and technical actions of male professional football players (n = 1160) were obtained using a video-based tracking system. Dyads were defined using a network analysis and composed of the nearest opponent. Interpersonal coordination of the dyads was analysed using the vector coding and the frequency for each coordination pattern was computed. In-phase was predominant for all displacement directions and offensive sequences outcomes, and antiphase was the least frequent. For lateral displacements, offensive sequences ending in shot to goal presented lower frequency for in-phase and higher frequency for offensive player phase than ended in defensive tackle. This information about the relationship of opponent players dyads during decisive moments of the matches provides fundamentals for future research and assists coaches to understand the different behaviours in successful and unsuccessful attacks.

Predicting the defensive performance of individual players in one vs. one soccer games

The aim of this study was to use technical skill and physical performance and coaches’ rankings to predict the defensive performance of junior soccer players. Twenty-one male players (mean age 17.2 years, SD = 1.1) were recruited from the Londrina Junior Team Football Academy in Brazil. Data were collected during regular training sessions. After participants had warmed up, players were asked to either dribble the ball or sprint through five custom circuits that varied in average curvature (0–1.37 radians.m^-1). In addition, four coaches were asked to rank the players from best to worst in defensive ability. Dribbling, sprinting, and coaches’ rankings were then compared with defending performance as assessed in the one vs. one competitions (N = 1090 paired-trials: 40–65 trials per individual), in which they acted as defender or attacker in turn. When defending, the objective was to steal the ball or prevent the attacker from running around them with the ball into a scoring zone. Testing occurred over three days. Overall, dribbling performance (r = 0.56; P = 0.008) and coaches’ ranking (r = 0.59; P = 0.004) were significantly related to defensive ability; sprinting performance was not (r = 0.20; P = 0.38). Though dribbling performance and coaches’ ranking each explained 30% and 37% of the variance in defensive performance, respectively, the two predictors were not related (r = 0.27; P = 0.23), so combined these traits explained more than half the variance in defensive performance. In conclusion, the current study demonstrates that including only one metric of closed-skill performance—dribbling speed—doubles the ability of coaches to identify their best defensive players in one vs. one scenarios.

Dribbling speed along curved paths predicts attacking performance in match-realistic one vs. one soccer games

This study assessed whether a new, closed-skill dribbling or sprinting task could predict attacking performance in soccer. Twenty-five male players were recruited from the Londrina Junior Team Football Academy in Brazil and asked to either dribble the ball or sprint through five custom circuits that varied in average curvature (0-1.37 radians.m^-1). These measures were then validated using a realistic one vs. one competition in which each player acted as attacker or defender in turn (N = 1330 bouts). Sprinting (ICC = 0.96) and dribbling (ICC = 0.97) performances were highly repeatable for individual players. Average dribbling speed decreased non-linearly with increasing circuit curvature (F = 239.5; P < 0.001) from 5.19 ± 0.11 ms^-1 on the straightest path to 2.13 ± 0.03 ms^-1 on the curviest. Overall, dribbling but not sprinting performance predicted attacking success in the one vs. one competition, explaining more than 50% of the variation in attacking success alone (r_p = 0.70; P < 0.001). In conclusion, our new closed-skill dribbling assessment is a valid and reliable protocol to predict a soccer player's success in attacking performance in one vs. one situation, and can be used to identify talented players.

Analysis of high-intensity efforts in brazilian professional soccer players

Purpose. The study aim was to characterize high-intensity efforts (HIEs) of soccer players. Methods. The HIE features were quantified according to playing positions, with the consideration of the moment of initial velocity increase, which precedes the velocity threshold. The total of 107 players of Brazilian first division championship were analysed with the automatic tracking method. HIE phase 1 began at the minimum local value and finished when the velocity reached 6.4 m/s. Phase 2 began immediately when the velocity exceeded 6.4 m/s and finished with the velocity lower than 6.4 m/s. Results. External defenders and forwards performed a greater (p < 0.01; d: 1.01-1.17) number of HIEs (40.0 ± 13.5 and 34.9 ± 6.6, respectively) than central defenders (26.6 ± 9.2). With respect to the distance covered and duration of phase 2, external defenders covered a greater (p < 0.01; d: 0.45-0.47) distance (13.5 ± 4.5 m) and spent more (p < 0.01; d: 0.24-0.26) time (1.8 ± 1.3 s) than central defenders (11.5 ± 4.3 m; 1.5 ± 1.2 s), forwards (11.4 ± 4.4 m; 1.5 ± 0.9 s), central midfielders (11.5 ± 4.4 m; 1.5 ± 1.2 s), and external midfielders (11.4 ± 4.6 m; 1.5 ± 1.1 s). Players performed a greater (p = 0.03; d: 2.29-5.17) number of HIEs with more than 120 s of recovery time compared with other time categories. Conclusions. The better characterization of HIE physical demands during soccer matches provides insights for coaches to plan a more specific physical training for professional players.