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The Use of Match Statistics that Discriminate Between Successful and Unsuccessful Soccer Teams

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Castellano J., Casamichana D., Lago C.

Journal of Human Kinetics

2012

vol. 31

137-147

Three soccer World Cups were analysed with the aim of identifying the match statistics which best discriminated between winning, drawing and losing teams. The analysis was based on 177 matches played during the three most recent World Cup tournaments: Korea/Japan 2002 (59), Germany 2006 (59) and South Africa 2010 (59). Two categories of variables were studied: 1) those related to attacking play: goals scored, total shots, shots on target, shots off target, ball possession, number of off-sides committed, fouls received and corners; and 2) those related to defence: total shots received, shots on target received, shots off target received, off-sides received, fouls committed, corners against, yellow cards and red cards. Discriminant analysis of these matches revealed the following: (a) the variables related to attacking play that best differentiated between winning, drawing and losing teams were total shots, shots on target and ball possession; and (b) the most discriminating variables related to defence were total shots received and shots on target received. These results suggest that winning, drawing and losing national teams may be discriminated from one another on the basis of variables such as ball possession and the effectiveness of their attacking play. This information may be of benefit to both coaches and players, adding to their knowledge about soccer performance indicators and helping to guide the training process.

Effect of Number of Touches and Exercise Duration on the Kinematic Profile and Heart Rate Response During Small-Sided Games in Soccer

100%

Casamichana D., Suarez-Arrones L., Castellano J., Román-Quintana J. S.

Journal of Human Kinetics

2014

vol. 41

issue 1

113-123

This study aimed to examine the effect of exercise duration and the number of touches allowed during possession on time-motion characteristics and the physiological responses of soccer players in 6 vs. 6 small-sided games (SSGs) lasting 12 minutes. The analysis divided each game into two 6-min periods and we compared two formats: free play (SSGfp) vs. a maximum of two touches per individual possession (SSG 2T). Participants were 12 semi-professional players (age: 22.7±4.3 years; body height: 177.5+4.9 cm; body mass: 74.9±6.3 kg) and the following variables were measured by means of heart rate monitors and GPS devices: mean heart rate (HRmean), time spent in each exercise intensity zone, total distance covered, total distance covered in different speed zones, number of accelerations at different intensities, maximum speed reached, player load, and the work-to-rest ratio. The results showed that in SSGFP there was a decrease in the intensity of physical parameters during the second 6-min period (6-12 min), whereas this decrease was not observed when a maximum of two touches per individual possession was allowed. During the second period (6-12 min) of SSG2T there was an increase in HRmean and in the time spent in high exercise intensity zones, but these differences were not observed in SSGFP. The value of these findings for soccer coaches is that they illustrate how different technical, tactical or conditioning objectives could be addressed by altering the length and format of the SSG used in training.

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2 Journal of Human Kinetics

1 2014

1 2012

2 Casamichana D.

2 Castellano J.

1 Lago C.

1 Román-Quintana J. S.

1 Suarez-Arrones L.

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The Use of Match Statistics that Discriminate Between Successful and Unsuccessful Soccer Teams

Effect of Number of Touches and Exercise Duration on the Kinematic Profile and Heart Rate Response During Small-Sided Games in Soccer