Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine the differences in the physical demands and technical-tactical actions encountered by soccer players between two playing formations (1-4-2-3-1 and 1-4-4-2) for each playing position. Twenty-three professional male soccer players who played 31 official matches participated in this study. Players were classified according to their playing position: central defenders (CD), wide defenders (WD), central midfielders (CM), wide midfielders (WM), offensive midfielders (OM) and forwards (FW). The physical demands were collected as total distance (TD), distance covered in different speed thresholds, and number of accelerations and decelerations. Also, the technical-tactical variables were recorded. The results showed that the 1-4-2-3-1 playing formation demanded decelerations between 2–4 m·s2 (p = 0.027; ES = 0.26) in comparison with 1-4-4-2 for all players. Likewise, forwards (FW) and central midfielders (CM) registered higher physical demands playing with the 1-4-2-3-1 compared to the 1-4-4-2 formation. Regarding the technical-tactical actions, they showed differences between the playing positions of the two playing formations. The findings suggest coaches prescribe specific training programs based on the influence of the playing formation and playing position on the physical demands and technical-tactical actions encountered by players during official match-play.
Highlights
A number of techniques have been used to establish the physical profile of soccer players and the great technological advance allows an increasingly detailed analysis of physical activity, sports tactics and technique [1,2,3]
The aim of this study was to examine the differences in the physical demands and technical-tactical actions encountered by soccer players between two different playing formations (i.e., 1-4-2-3-1 and 1-4-4-2 diamond) for each playing position
The descriptives of the technical-tactical actions encountered by soccer players for each playing position and for all players using the 1-4-2-3-1 and 1-4-4-2 diamond playing formations are shown in Tables 4 and 5
Summary
A number of techniques have been used to establish the physical profile of soccer players and the great technological advance allows an increasingly detailed analysis of physical activity, sports tactics and technique [1,2,3]. In the context of training and competition, global positioning system (GPS) data has been applied in order to measure, monitor and evaluate external load [4]. Semi-automatic recording techniques through multi-video cameras have been used to measure and monitor the physical demands of the players, and different technical-tactical outcomes, as individual players and as a team. The semiautomatic recording techniques through multiple video camera systems most used by the major soccer leagues have been the Amisco® (Athletic, Nice, France) of France [7,8]; the ProZone® (Prozone Sports, Leeds, England) from England [9]; since 2011, the Mediacoach system® (Mediapro, Madrid, Spain) in the Spanish Professional Football.
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