Comparação entre os impactos de protocolos baseados em tarefas motoras sobre o desempenho físico de jovens jogadores de futebol durante pequenos jogos

Abstract

This study compared the impact of motor task-based protocols (sprint, coordination, and combined) on the physical performance of young soccer players during small-sided games. Sixteen athletes (15.5 ± 0.5 years, 66.8 ± 7.6 kg, 171.8 ± 4.8 cm) participated in the study, and their physical performance was recorded using GPS (Catapult Sports, PlayerTek, Melbourne, Australia, 10Hz) during 7-minute small-sided soccer games (GK + 4v4 + GK) on a field with dimensions of 49 m × 31 m. The small-sided games were performed after the execution of a low cognitive load protocol (CONT) and three experimental protocols: motor task based on repeated sprints (SPRT), motor task based on coordination exercises (COOR), and a protocol based on combined motor tasks (COMB). The analyzed metrics were total distance covered, distance covered per minute, distance covered in sprints, total number of accelerations, and total number of decelerations. The main finding of the study was that the COMB task induced the most significant changes in players' movement behavior, particularly evident in sprint distance covered, compared to the other protocols (SPRT and COOR) and the CONT protocol. The results showed a reduction in the distance covered in sprints and an increase in the number of accelerations after the SPRT task compared to the CONT protocol. Additionally, there was a reduction in total distance covered, distance covered per minute, and distance covered in sprints after the COOR task compared to the CONT protocol. It is essential for professionals to plan training sessions based on these results, as such protocols impact players' physical performance in small-sided games.