Decision-making skills of high-performance youth soccer players

Abstract

Objectives This study aimed to develop a valid video-based diagnostic instrument that assesses decision-making with a sport-specific motor response. Methods A total of 86 German youth academy players (16.7 ± 0.9 years) viewed game situations projected on a large video screen and were required to make a decision by dribbling and passing to one of three targets (representing different decision options). The test included 48 clips separated into two categories: build-up (bu) and offensive decisions (off). Criterion-related validity was tested based on age (i.e., U16, U17, and U19), playing status (i.e., minutes played in official matches of the current season) and in a prospective approach relating to future youth national team status (i.e., selected or nonselected). Finally, it was investigated whether decision-making competence was influenced by playing position (i.e., defenders vs. midfielders vs. forwards). Results Instrumental reliability demonstrated satisfactory values for SCbu (r = 0.72), and lower for SCoff (r = 0.56). Results showed the diagnostic instrument is suitable for discriminating between playing status (SCbu: Φ = 0.22, p < 0.01; SCoff: Φ = 0.14, p < 0.05) and between younger (U16) and older players (U17 > U16 in SCbu: Φ = 0.24 and SCoff: Φ = 0.39, p < 0.01; U19 > U16 in SCbu: Φ = 0.41 and SCoff: Φ = 0.46, p < 0.01); however, there was no difference between U17 and U19 players. Furthermore, the predictive value of the test indicates that future youth national team players make better decisions with respect to the build-up category (SCbu: Φ = 0.20; p < 0.05), whereas playing position did not significantly influence decision-making competence. Conclusion Results indicate the video-based decision-making diagnostic instrument can discriminate decision-making competence within a high-performance youth group. The outcomes associated with national youth team participation demonstrate the predictive value of the diagnostic instrument. This study provides initial evidence to suggest a new video-based diagnostic instrument with a soccer-specific motor response can be used within a talent identification process to assist with assessment of decision-making performance.

The role of domain-specific and domain-general cognitive functions and skills in sports performance: A meta-analysis.

“…Of the included studies, 11 (8%) used a prospective design in at least part of the study (participants n = 1,154). Of these, three used participants who were in late childhood with a total of 436 athletes (de Joode et al, 2021; Ishihara et al, 2019; Sakamoto et al, 2018), four used athletes in adolescence with a total of 272 participants (de Joode et al, 2021; Joseph et al, 2021; Murr et al, 2021; O’Connor et al, 2016), and eight in adulthood with a total of 565 participants (Gabbett et al, 2011; Hagyard et al, 2021; Lundgren et al, 2016; Morris-Binelli et al, 2018; Vestberg et al, 2012).…”

Decision-Making Skills in Youth Basketball Players: Diagnostic and External Validation of a Video-Based Assessment

“…On the other hand, players from different playing positions can be expected to perform better in situations that they proficiently solve in a game. Such an enhancement has been shown to be beneficial for the assessment of the decision-making skills of elite youth soccer players [ 69 ]. Besides, options like shooting or driving towards the basket should be incorporated as possible options besides passing the ball.…”

Relative Age-Related Biases in Objective and Subjective Assessments of Performance in Talented Youth Soccer Players

“…Therefore, past research has examined objective and subjective diagnostics that assess performance factors that might discriminate between skilled and less-skilled players. A variety of objective measures of performance have been investigated, including those that assess speed (e.g., Gil et al, 2014), technical skills (e.g., Höner et al, 2017;Bergkamp et al, 2019), perceptual-cognitive skills (e.g., Murr et al, 2020), and psychological attributes (e.g., Toering et al, 2009;Höner and Feichtinger, 2016). Each has been shown to be related to future success in soccer.…”