Abstract
The purposes of this study were (1) to analyze between-session variations of external and internal load measures during small-sided games (SSGs) and (2) to test the relationships between the maximum speed reached (VIFT) during the last stage of the 30-15 Intermittent Fitness Test, hemoglobin levels, and training load measures during SSG intervals among professional soccer players. Sixteen professional soccer players (mean ± SD; age 27.2 ± 3.4 years, height 174.2 ± 3.6 cm, body mass 69.1 ± 6.4 kg, and body fat 10.4 ± 4.1%) participated in this study. Hemoglobin and aerobic performance were first tested, and then a 3-week SSG program was applied using a 3 vs. 3 format. During those 3 weeks, internal and external load of entire sessions were also monitored for all training sessions. Trivial-to-small, standardized differences were observed between sessions for external and internal measures during SSGs. Total distance (TD) and mechanical work (MW) were the only variables that indicated small changes. Large-to-very-large relationships were found between VIFT and external loads: TD (r range: 0.69; 0.87), high-intensity running (HIR; r range: 0.66; 0.75), and MW (r range: 0.56; 0.68). Moderate-to-large negative relationships were found between hemoglobin levels and internal loads: Edwards’ TRIMP (r range: −0.36; −0.63), %HRmax (r range: −0.50; −0.61), and red zone (r range: −0.50; −0.61). VIFT had unclear relationships with overall internal loads, while hemoglobin levels presented unclear relationships with overall external loads. In conclusion, no meaningful changes were found between sessions considering the format of play used. Additionally, the detected relationships indicate that VIFT and hemoglobin levels are good indicators of the performance capacity and physiological profile of players during SSGs. Also, the use of SSGs protocols as a monitoring complement of the 30-15IFT is suggested.
Highlights
The practical operationalization of soccer training in recent years has placed great emphasis on the inclusion of small-sided games (SSGs), which encompass the psychological, physical, technical, and tactical aspects of the game (Clemente et al, 2012)
Large-to-very-large positive correlation coefficients were observed between VIFT with Total distance (TD) (r range: 0.69; 0.87) and high-intensity running (HIR) (r range: 0.66; 0.75) in different sessions (Figure 2)
Small negative to unclear positive associations were observed between VIFT and all internal load measures (r range: −0.25; 0.26)
Summary
The practical operationalization of soccer training in recent years has placed great emphasis on the inclusion of small-sided games (SSGs), which encompass the psychological, physical, technical, and tactical aspects of the game (Clemente et al, 2012). The main objective of this training method is to mimic all those aspects of soccer that are required during competitions but on a smaller scale (Clemente et al, 2020; Clemente and Sarmento, 2020). Some research suggests that SSGs themselves may not be enough to promote the same patterns of the required physical demands during a soccer match, mainly due to the reduced frequency of high-intensity distance-based metrics of this training approach (Hammami et al, 2017; Lacome et al, 2017). Knowing the physical demands during SSGs is, for that reason, an important way to ensure a proper stimulus on the players
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