The Microstructure of Practice Activities Engaged by Elite Youth Soccer Players

Abstract

The objective of this study was to examine the microstructure of practice engaged by elite youth soccer players and compare it to non-elite soccer players. A total of twenty four training sessions (n = 24) were recorded (with 3 days per week, 3 d/wk) over 8 weeks of pre-competitive season. The microstructure of practice activities was divided into two main types that are Training Form (TF) and Playing Form (PF). The sub-activities in the TF consist of technical and conditioning activities while PF consists of tactical, match-play and small-side games (SSG) activities. The result showed that elite youth soccer players spent 46.8% in training form activities (46.8%) followed by playing form (34.7%) and others (18.5%) while non-elite players spent 45% in training form, followed by playing form (36.6%) and others (18.4%). No significant differences were found between the elite and non-elite groups. In summary, elite youth soccer players had spent time in practice activities begin from training form, followed by playing form and others during pre-competitive season. During pre-competitive phase, coaches seem to focus on activities to regenerate and improve the player's conditioning and technical skills since the nature of training for these types of practice activities that had been done in isolation or in small group session. Therefore, an investigation on the types of activities engaged between the different phases should be included in future research.