Mental fatigue as a conditioner of the tactical and physical response in soccer players: a pilot study

Abstract

Purpose. the aim of the study was to verify the effect of mental fatigue on tactical actions quality and the intensity of covered distance in soccer players. Methods. Six U-15 male soccer players participated in this study (14.7 ± 0.59 years of age). For data collection, the FUtSAt and GPSports® (SPI-HPU) systems were applied. to induce mental fatigue, the Stroop task was used for 20 minutes. the individuals were evaluated in 2 conditions: mental fatigue and control (with and without the Stroop task). Statistical analysis was performed with the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, t-test, and Wilcoxon test. Results. the results displayed significant differences in actions related to principles of balance (p = 0.02), defensive unity (p < 0.01), and total defensive actions (p = 0.02), as well as in the covered distance in intensity related to zones 3 (p = 0.03) and 6 (p < 0.01). In mental fatigue, the players revealed a decrease in tactical action quality referring to movements that aimed at numerical stability in relations of opposition and at defending in unity and in block, and covered greater distances in zones 3 and 6. Conclusions. Mental fatigue modified the players' movement dynamics on the pitch with reference to the quality of tactical actions and covered distance intensity.

Influence of floaters and positional status on players’ tactical, physical, and physiological responses in soccer small-sided games

“…since ssG may be used by groups with different levels -like collegiate students [30] -future studies with the formats presented here are demanded to check if the current results are applicable irrespective of the players' level of practice. Also, mental fatigue has been shown to impair players' tactical performance in ssG [31]. At this point, since the 2-floater condition may be a novel context for many players, further studies are required to verify if players mentally fatigued are able to explore the space within such a context.…”

Mental Fatigue in Soccer: A Systematic Review

“…In other two studies, no clear effects of mental fatigue were identified in small-sided games. 42,44 Coutinho et al 41 observed shorter total distances covered and Kunrath et al 43 found higher values of distance covered at speeds between 10 and 12.9 km/h and ≥ 18 km/h.…”

“…Four different cognitive tasks were used as a protocol for inducing mental fatigue, the AX-CPT (90 minutes), the Stroop paper [38][39][40][41] and computer version (20 -30 minutes) 42,43 , and the motor coordination task 44 . In control condition, the subjects read magazines [38][39][40] , watched TV documentaries 30,42 , and performed a warm-up lasting the same time as the intervention condition 44 .…”

“…One study applied the BRUMS questionnaire to evaluate the measures of fatigue and the Matthews, Campbell and Falconer scale 45 for motivation, while one study did not apply any subjective ratings. 43 The Borg Scale -6 to 20 38 and CR-10 30,41,42,44 were applied to measure perceived exertion in the physical task following the mentally fatiguing cognitive task. It were observed higher mental fatigue levels after cognitive tasks in all studies which subjective ratings were available.…”

“…Among them, only one found a decrease in VO 2 values during the physical task in mental fatigue condition. 30 Six studies measured physical variables 30,38,[41][42][43][44] using a laboratory protocol 30 and five studies 38,[41][42][43][44] used a field protocol. In the lab's protocol, Smith et al 30 verified a decrease in the total distance covered on the treadmill test and shorter distances covered at lower zones of speed.…”