Latest research in football - week 27 - 2018

#1 The Demands of a Women's College Soccer Season
Reference: Sports (Basel). 2018 Feb 23;6(1). pii: E16. doi: 10.3390/sports6010016.
Authors: Gentles JA, Coniglio CL, Besemer MM, Morgan JM, Mahnken MT
Download link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969200/pdf/sports-06-00016.pdf
Summary: The purpose of this study was to use GPS, accelerometers, and session rating of perceived exertion (sRPE) to examine the demands of a Division II women's soccer team. Data was collected on 25 collegiate Division II women's soccer players over an entire regular season (17 matches and 24 practices). ZephyrTM BioHarnesses (BHs) were used to collect tri-axial acceleration information and GPS derived variables for all matches and practices. Acceleration data was used to calculate Impulse Load, a measure of mechanical load that includes only locomotor related accelerations. GPS was used to quantify total distance and distance in six speed zones. Internal Training Loads were assessed via sRPE. Mean Impulse Load, total distance, and sRPE during match play was 20,120 ± 8609 N·s, 5.48 ± 2.35 km, and 892.50 ± 358.50, respectively. Mean Impulse Load, total distance, and sRPE during practice was 12,410 ± 4067 N·s, 2.95 ± 0.95 km, and 143.30 ± 123.50, respectively. Several very large to nearly perfect correlations were found between Impulse Load and total distance (r = 0.95; p < 0.001), Impulse Load and sRPE (r = 0.84; p < 0.001), and total distance and sRPE (r = 0.82; p < 0.001). This study details the mechanical demands of Division II women's soccer match play. This study also demonstrates that Impulse Load is a good indicator of total distance.



#2 Seasonal Variations in Physical Fitness and Performance Indices of Elite Soccer Players
Reference: Sports (Basel). 2018 Feb 13;6(1). pii: E14. doi: 10.3390/sports6010014.
Authors: Meckel Y, Doron O, Eliakim E, Eliakim A
Download link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969193/pdf/sports-06-00014.pdf
Summary: The aim of the study was to investigate seasonal variations in fitness and performance indices of professional male soccer players. Eighteen professional male soccer players (age range 22⁻32 years) completed three similar sets of tests at three stages of the season: before preseason; after preseason and the middle of the competitive in-season. A significant decrease in body mass and percent fat was found during the preseason. A significant improvement (p < 0.05) was found in the vertical jump (preseason: 37.0 ± 5.3, post-preseason: 39.0 ± 4.8, mid-season: 40.3 ± 5.5 cm), the 4 × 10-m agility test (preseason: 8.1 ± 0.2, post-preseason: 7.9 ± 0.2, mid-season: 8.1 ± 0.3 s), flexibility (preseason: 45.2 ± 8.8, post-preseason: 48.2 ± 7.0, mid-season: 49.9 ± 6.9 cm) and aerobic capacity (preseason: 52.7 ± 6.6, post-preseason: 56.4 ± 6.0, mid-season: 57.4 ± 5.4 mL/kg/min) during preseason, with no further change during mid-season. Repeated sprint test (RST) (6 × 30-m) performance indices showed significant deterioration (p < 0.05) in ideal sprint time (IS; preseason: 21.8 ± 1.0, post-preseason: 23.0 ± 0.8, mid-season: 23.2 ± 0.8 s) and total sprint time (TS; preseason: 22.5 ± 0.7, post-preseason: 23.5 ± 0.6, mid-season: 23.8 ± 0.6 s) during preseason, with no further changes during mid-season. However, performance decrement (PD) significantly decreased during the preseason with no change during mid-season. The findings suggest that while power training was probably responsible for the anaerobic fitness improvement, the high-volume training led to improvement in aerobic fitness during the preseason. However, the low-intensity aerobic-type training, coupled with the high total training load, may have led to fatigue and decreases in IS and TS during the preseason.


#3 The Influence of Playing Position and Contextual Factors on Soccer Players' Match Differential Ratings of Perceived Exertion: A Preliminary Investigation
Reference: Sports (Basel). 2018 Feb 12;6(1). pii: E13. doi: 10.3390/sports6010013.
Authors: Barrett S, McLaren S, Spears I, Ward P, Weston M
Download link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5969182/pdf/sports-06-00013.pdf
Summary: (1) Background: Differential RPE (dRPE) separates scores for breathlessness (RPE-B), leg muscle exertion (RPE-L) and technical/cognitive exertion (RPE-T). Limited information for dRPE is available in soccer match play, yet these measurements may help inform practitioners training and recovery strategies. This preliminary study investigated the effects of playing position and contextual factors on elite soccer players' dRPE. (2) Methods: Thirty-two male English Premier League players recorded dRPE scores 15⁻30 min post-match for RPE-B, RPE-L, and RPE-T. Data were analysed using linear mixed models, with magnitude-based inferences subsequently applied. (3) Results: Overall, the mean ± SD for the dRPE were 63 ± 23 arbitrary units (au) (RPE-B), 67 ± 22 au (RPE-L), and 60 ± 24 au (RPE-T). Full Backs reported substantially higher RPE-B, RPE-L and RPE-T when compared to all other positions. Substantially higher RPE-T scores were reported for matches played against Top teams compared to Bottom (10 au; 90% Confidence Interval 5 to 15 au) and Middle (10 au; 4 to 15 au) ranked teams. The effects of match result and location on dRPE were not substantial. (4) Conclusions: Positional differences were observed following soccer match play for RPE-B, RPE-L and RPE-T. Full backs had substantially higher dRPE then any other position, with all players reporting increased RPE-T when playing teams at the Top of the league. These findings can help practitioners monitor internal load responses and support the prescription of training and recovery sessions.


#4 Relationships and Predictive Capabilities of Jump Assessments to Soccer-Specific Field Test Performance in Division I Collegiate Players
Reference: Sports (Basel). 2016 Dec 3;4(4). pii: E56. doi: 10.3390/sports4040056.
Authors: Lockie RG, Stage AA, Stokes JJ, Orjalo AJ, Davis DL, Giuliano DV, Moreno MR, Risso FG, Lazar A, Birmingham-Babauta SA, Tomita TM
Download link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5968899/pdf/sports-04-00056.pdf
Summary: Leg power is an important characteristic for soccer, and jump tests can measure this capacity. Limited research has analyzed relationships between jumping and soccer-specific field test performance in collegiate male players. Nineteen Division I players completed tests of: leg power (vertical jump (VJ), standing broad jump (SBJ), left- and right-leg triple hop (TH)); linear (30 m sprint; 0⁻5 m, 5⁻10 m, 0⁻10, 0⁻30 m intervals) and change-of-direction (505) speed; soccer-specific fitness (Yo-Yo Intermittent Recovery Test Level 2); and 7 × 30-m sprints to measure repeated-sprint ability (RSA; total time (TT), performance decrement (PD)). Pearson's correlations (r) determined jump and field test relationships; stepwise regression ascertained jump predictors of the tests (p < 0.05). All jumps correlated with the 0⁻5, 0⁻10, and 0⁻30 m sprint intervals (r = -0.65⁻-0.90). VJ, SBJ, and left- and right-leg TH correlated with RSA TT (r = -0.51⁻-0.59). Right-leg TH predicted the 0⁻5 and 0⁻10 m intervals (R² = 0.55⁻0.81); the VJ predicted the 0⁻30 m interval and RSA TT (R² = 0.41⁻0.84). Between-leg TH asymmetry correlated with and predicted left-leg 505 and RSA PD (r = -0.68⁻0.62; R² = 0.39⁻0.46). Improvements in jumping ability could contribute to faster speed and RSA performance in collegiate soccer players.


#5 Coalitional Physical Competition : Acute Salivary Steroid Hormone Responses among Juvenile Male Soccer Players in Hong Kong
Reference: Hum Nat. 2018 Jun 16. doi: 10.1007/s12110-018-9321-7. [Epub ahead of print]
Authors: McHale TS, Chee WC, Chan KC, Zava DT, Gray PB
Summary: A large body of research links testosterone and cortisol to male-male competition. Yet, little work has explored acute steroid hormone responses to coalitional, physical competition during middle childhood. Here, we investigate testosterone, dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA), androstenedione, and cortisol release among ethnically Chinese boys in Hong Kong (N = 102), aged 8-11 years, during a soccer match (n = 84) and an intrasquad soccer scrimmage (n = 81), with 63 participants competing in both treatments. The soccer match and intrasquad soccer scrimmage represented out-group and in-group treatments, respectively. Results revealed that testosterone showed no measurable change. DHEA increased during both treatments in the majority of participants and the degree of change had no relation to independent variables (e.g., performance, age, treatment, outcome) or covariate measures (Body Mass Index, Pubertal Development Scale). Most boys experienced androstenedione increases during match play, but no significant differences during the intrasquad soccer scrimmage competitions. The magnitude of change differed significantly between treatments and was positively associated with age. These latter findings suggest boys' androstenedione responses may be sensitive to competitor type (i.e., unknown competitors vs. peers). For most subjects, cortisol significantly increased during match play, decreased during the intrasquad soccer scrimmage, and differed significantly between treatments, suggesting each treatment promoted a different psychological state among competitors. Cortisol/DHEA molar ratio decreased during the intrasquad scrimmage, suggestive of a more relaxed mental state. These data shed new light on potential proximate mechanisms associated with coalitional competition among prepubescent boys, with relevance to adrenarche and life history theory.


#6 Prevalence of femoroacetabular impingement and effect of training frequency on aetiology in paediatric football players
Reference: Hip Int. 2018 Jun 1:1120700018781939. doi: 10.1177/1120700018781939. [Epub ahead of print]
Authors: Polat G, Arzu U, Dinç E, Bayraktar B
Summary: The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of asymptomatic radiographic findings of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI) in paediatric football players in different age groups and to investigate aetiological factors. Paediatric male athletes between 10 and 17 years of age from 8 soccer teams were recruited. In addition to an annual control check-up, anteroposterior pelvis and frog-leg radiographs as well as the curriculum vitae of the athletes, their injuries, and real-time complaints were recorded. The alpha angle, lateral centre-edge angle, Tönnis angle, and collodiaphyseal angle were measured and morphological abnormalities were noted. There were 214 male football players with a mean age of 13.4 ± 3.2 years included in the study. In the morphological analysis of hips, there was FAI in 30% of the athletes. In the analysis of FAI prevalence in 3 subgroups based on age (Group 1: 10-12 years [ n = 25], Group 2: 13-15 years [ n = 104], Group 3: 16-17 years [ n = 85]), there was 0% FAI in Group 1, 19.1% in Group 2 and 60% in Group 3. In the analysis of aetiological factors, there was no significant difference between the right and left hips of players regarding alpha angles and FAI prevalence. However, the prevalence of FAI was higher in players who had been playing football for 3 years or more and who had been training for 12.5 hours/week or more. Training for 12.5 hours or more per week in paediatric football players doubled the risk development of FAI morphology.


#7 Return to play, performance and career duration after ACL rupture: a case-control study in in the five biggest football nations in Europe
Reference: Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2018 Jun 21. doi: 10.1111/sms.13245. [Epub ahead of print]
Authors: Niederer D, Engeroff T, Wilke J, Vogt L, Banzer W
Summary: A media-based collection and further analysis of relative return to play (RTP) rates and the corresponding quality of play after anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) rupture in top level football was the aim of our study. In the 5-year case-control study, male players from the first two leagues of the five European countries top leagues, who sustained a total ACL rupture during the season 2010/11 and/or 2011/12, were included. For them and a matched control sample (ratio 1:2), data were retrieved from the publicly available and validated media-based platforms (transfermarkt.de & whoscored. com) until the end of season 2016/17. Injury and return to play-specific data were calculated as rate ratios (RR) to compare the injured and matched control athletes rates and as a survival analysis (log-rank-test; career duration). Overall, 132 ACL-injuries in 125 players occurred. The RTP rate was 98.2%, the RTP to same level was 59.4%. Five years post RTP, 69.9% of the ACL group were still engaged in football (RR = 87%), 40.9% at the same level (RR = 72%). Survival analysis revealed a systematic group difference in career duration compared to controls (Cox-Mantel's Chi² =5.8; p= .016). Game performance (scoring points, p < .001; rates/number of completed passes, p = .048; and minutes played, p < .001) was lower in the ACL athletes than in the matching group in the RTP and post RTP seasons. Although absolute and relative RTP rates after ACL reconstruction are high in professional football, career duration and performance quality are lower than in the reference group. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.


#8 Effects of Training and Competition Load on Neuromuscular Recovery, Testosterone, Cortisol, and Match Performance During a Season of Professional Football
Reference: Front Physiol. 2018 Jun 7;9:668. doi: 10.3389/fphys.2018.00668. eCollection 2018.
Authors: Rowell AE, Aughey RJ, Hopkins WG, Esmaeili A, Lazarus BH, Cormack SJ
Download link: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6000155/pdf/fphys-09-00668.pdf
Summary: Training load and other measures potentially related to match performance are routinely monitored in team-sport athletes. The aim of this research was to examine the effect of training load on such measures and on match performance during a season of professional football. Training load was measured daily as session duration times perceived exertion in 23 A-League football players. Measures of exponentially weighted cumulative training load were calculated using decay factors representing time constants of 3-28 days. Players performed a countermovement jump for estimation of a measure of neuromuscular recovery (ratio of flight time to contraction time, FT:CT), and provided a saliva sample for measurement of testosterone and cortisol concentrations 1-day prior to each of 34 matches. Match performance was assessed via ratings provided by five coaching and fitness staff on a 5-point Likert scale. Effects of training load on FT:CT, hormone concentrations and match performance were modeled as quadratic predictors and expressed as changes in the outcome measure for a change in the predictor of one within-player standard deviation (1 SD) below and above the mean. Changes in each of five playing positions were assessed using standardization and magnitude-based inference. The largest effects of training were generally observed in the 3- to 14-day windows. Center defenders showed a small reduction in coach rating when 14-day a smoothed load increased from -1 SD to the mean (-0.31, ±0.15; mean, ±90% confidence limits), whereas strikers and wide midfielders displayed a small increase in coach rating when load increased 1 SD above the mean. The effects of training load on FT:CT were mostly unclear or trivial, but effects of training load on hormones included a large increase in cortisol (102, ±58%) and moderate increase in testosterone (24, ±18%) in center defenders when 3-day smoothed training load increased 1 SD above the mean. A 1 SD increase in training load above the mean generally resulted in substantial reductions in testosterone:cortisol ratio. The effects of recent training on match performance and hormones in A-League football players highlight the importance of position-specific monitoring and training.


#9 In-Season Variations in Head Impact Exposure among Youth Football Players
Reference: J Neurotrauma. 2018 Jun 19. doi: 10.1089/neu.2018.5699. [Epub ahead of print]
Authors: Urban JE, Kelley ME, Espeland MA, Davenport EM, Whitlow CT, Powers AK, Maldjian JA, Stitzel JD
Summary: Head impact exposure (HIE) is often summarized by the total exposure measured during the season and does not indicate how the exposure was accumulated, or how it varied during the season. Therefore, the objective of this study is to compare HIE during preseason, the first and second halves of the regular season, and playoffs in a sample of youth football players (n=119, ages 9-13). Athletes were divided into one of four exposure groups based on quartiles computed from the distribution of risk-weighted cumulative exposure (RWECP). Mean impacts per session and mean 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration in practices and games were compared across the four exposure groups and time frames using mixed effects models. Within games, the mean 95th percentile accelerations for the entire sample ranged from 47.2 g and 2331.3 rad/s2 during preseason to 52.1 g and 2533.4 rad/s2 during the second half of regular season. Mean impacts per practice increased from preseason to the second half of regular season and declined into playoffs among all exposure groups; however, the variation between time frames was not greater than 2 impacts per practice. Time of season had a significant relationship with mean 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration in games (both p=0.01) but not with practice accelerations or impacts/session. The in-practice mean levels of 95th percentile linear and rotational acceleration remained fairly constant across the four time frames, but in games these changed over time depending on exposure group (interactions p<0.05). The results of this study improve our understanding of in-season variations in HIE in youth football and may inform important opportunities for future interventions.


#10 The "Football is Medicine" platform-scientific evidence, large-scale implementation of evidence-based concepts and future perspectives
Reference: Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2018 Jun 19. doi: 10.1111/sms.13220. [Epub ahead of print]
Authors: Krustrup P, Williams CA, Mohr M, Hansen PR, Helge EW, Elbe AM, de Sousa M, et al.
Download link: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/sms.13220