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Are non-starters accumulating enough load compared with starters? Examining load, wellness, and training/match ratios of a European professional soccer team
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Advisor(s)
Abstract(s)
Background The aims of the study were to: (i) compare accumulated load and wellness between starters and non starters of a European professional soccer team; (ii) analyze the relationships between wellness and load measures
and; (iii) compare training/match ratio (TMr) of external and internal load between starters and non-starters.
Methods Ten players were considered starters while seven were classifed as non-starters over a 16-week period
in which six training sessions and match day (MD) were considered in each weekly micro-cycle. The following meas‑
ures were used: wellness (fatigue, quality of sleep, muscle soreness, stress, and mood); load (rated of perceived
exertion (RPE), session-RPE (s-RPE), high-speed running (HSR), sprinting, accelerations (ACC) and decelerations (DEC)).
Accumulated wellness/load were calculated by summing all training and match sessions, while TMr was calculated
by dividing accumulated training load by match data for all load measures and each player. Mann–Whitney U test
was used for wellness variables, while independent T-test was used for the remaining variables to compare groups.
Moreover, relationships among variables were explored using the Spearman’s Rho correlation coefcient.
Results The main results showed that non-starters presented higher signifcant values for fatigue (p<0.019; g=0.24)
and lower signifcant values for duration (p<0.006; ES=1.81) and s-RPE (p<0.001; ES=2.69) when compared to start‑
ers. Moreover, positive and very large correlation was found between quality of sleep and RPE, while negative
and very large correlation were found between stress and deceleration, and mood and deceleration (all, p<0.05).
Finally, non-starters presented higher values in all TMr than starters, namely, RPE (p=0.001; g=1.96), s-RPE (p=0.002;
g=1.77), HSR (p=0.001; g=2.02), sprinting (p=0.002; g=4.23), accelerations (p=0.001; g=2.72), decelerations
(p<0.001; g=3.44), and duration (p=0.003; g=2.27).
Conclusions In conclusion, this study showed that non-starters produced higher TMr in all examined variables
despite the lower match and training durations when compared with starters, suggesting that physical load
was adjusted appropriately. Additionally, higher RPE was associated with improved sleep while higher number
of decelerations were associated with decreased wellness, namely, stress and mood for non-starters.
Description
Keywords
fatigue football mood muscle soreness load sleep stress wellbeing training load load quantifcation external load Internal load sports training
Citation
Oliveira, R., Canário-Lemos, R., Morgans, R., Rafael-Moreira, T., Vilaça-Alves, J. & Brito, J. (2023). Are non-starters accumulating enough load compared with starters? Examining load, wellness, and training/match ratios of a European professional soccer team. BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil 15, 129. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13102-023-00743-y
Publisher
Springer Nature