Abstract
Abstract Aim: The aim was to compare performance in specific-skill tests and motor coordination between groups with different technical efficiency and verify possible variables related to specific skills and motor coordination that contribute to discriminate players into high- and low-technical efficiency. Methods: The sample consisted of 82 young soccer players (12-15 years). Body size, bone age, motor performance tests, soccer-specific skill tests, and frequency of technical actions in SSG were analyzed. Statistic cluster-derived ANOVA F was used to identify which variables related to technical action most contributed to classifying subjects with similar performance. Discriminant analysis (Stepwise Method) was used to verify which predictor variables discriminated players into groups of low- and high-frequency technical actions in SSG. Statistical significance was set at 5%. Results: The group of high technical efficiency presented better performance in motor tests, shuttle run (P = 0.04; ES = −0.55), jumping laterally (P = 0.02; ES = 0.58), kicking speed (P = 0.03; ES = 0.60), soccer-specific skill tests, leading the ball in a straight line (LBSL) (P = 0.01; ES = −0.75), and zig-zag ball control (ZZBC) (P = 0.04; ES = −0.55); variable leading the ball in a straight line correctly discriminated 60% of players into high- and low-frequency groups. Conclusion: The frequency of technical actions in SSG was poorly influenced by motor performance and specific skill tests, and only the LBSL test correctly classified players of different frequencies of technical actions in SSG.
Highlights
Soccer is one of the sport most widely practiced in the world and the inclusion of youth athletes has increased in selection processes[1,2]
Researchers involved in the understanding of the formation of young players commonly adopt a battery of specific tests to evaluate motor coordination and technical skills[9,10]; tests that, they present a moderate correlation between the tests of specific skills with technical performance[11,12] and motor performance[13,14] present little or no relation with the real situation of the game, since, do not represent the real complexity in games due to their low ecological validity[15]
The result of the discriminant analysis revealed that leading the ball in a straight line (LBSL) predicted the technical action frequency during
Summary
Soccer is one of the sport most widely practiced in the world and the inclusion of youth athletes has increased in selection processes[1,2]. Despite the need to include technical performance and motor coordination analyses in studies with young soccer players, other factors need to be pointed out, like the fact of the lack of standardization tests and the variety of procedures available seem to be limitations in comparing research results and the consequent advances in understanding this issue Ali[8]. It occurs mainly because soccer is a complex phenomenon[17,18], i.e., when isolating some factor to be analyzed, the information could be lost since the modality is marked by the interaction between different domains[19,20]
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