Physiological Responses and Activity Profiles of Football Small-Sided Games

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify the acute physiological responses and activity profiles of football small-sided games (SSG) formats. Ten professional football players participated in 4 variations of SSG (2-, 3-, 4-, and 5-a-side) with an intermittent regime involving 3 × 6-minute bouts with 1 minute of passive planned rest in which the heart rate (HR), rating of perceived exertion (RPE), activity profile, and body load were recorded. The higher percentage of maximum HR values were found in 2- and 3-a-side formats (p ≤ 0.05). The lowest RPE value was found at the 5-a-side, and the highest was found at the 2-a-side (13.48 ± 2.67 and 17.01 ± 1.80, respectively, p ≤ 0.05). The distance covered in the 2-a-side format (598.97 ± 78.91 m) was smaller than in all other formats. The 2-a-side format presented the lowest number of sprints (0.71 ± 0.86) and the 3-a-side the highest (2.50 ± 1.65). Statistically significant differences were found across SSG in the total body load. The 4-a-side presented the highest and the 5-a-side the lowest values (95.18 ± 17.54 and 86.43 ± 14.47, respectively). The body load per minute declined each 2 minutes of play. Maintaining a constant area:player ratio, coaches can use lower number of players (2- and 3-a-side) to increase cardiovascular effects but use higher number of players (4- and 5-a-side) to increase variability and specificity according to the competition demands.

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“…The HR% values recorded in the following study, during the exercise of 3vs3, stands at 87,2±3,3% of HR max, are in agreement with other studies assessing the 3vs3, (performed with or without the presence of goalkeepers) that have reported percentages of max HR ranging between 87% and 89%. 16,18,25,33,34 This valuesare in agreement with another study that showed during an exercise conducted in 3vs3 "cage" modality, although with smaller subjects compared to those of this study, FC values equal to 88±2,7% of HR max.…”

“…The RPE values of 3vs3 (17,5±0,7) are in agreement with other studies that, however, used a larger field, a greater playing time and different age subjects (3,34). The RPE values revealed during the 4vs4 (16,3±1,3) are in agreement with other studies carried out on young players.…”

Efeito do número de jogadores sobre a demanda física e respostas fisiológicas durante jogos com campo reduzido em jogadores de futebol sub-15

“…A et al 19 , analisando jogadores adultos, demonstraram que a distância percorrida em "sprints" foi superior no JCR 3 vs 3 comparado aos JCRs 5 vs 5 e 2 vs 2. No presente estudo, não encontramos diferença na distância percorrida em "sprint" comparando os JCRs 3 vs 3 e 7 vs 7; porém, a distância percorrida em "sprint" em ambos os JCRs (44 ± 38 m; 38 ± 25 m) no presente estudo foram superiores às distâncias (10, No entanto, não podemos levar em consideração apenas a distância em "sprints" como característica de demanda física, pois ela é in uenciada pelo tamanho do campo.…”

Demandas Físicas São Influenciadas Pelo Estatuto Posicional Em Pequenos Jogos De Futebol?

“…Em relação aos pequenos jogos, estudos frequentemente investigam respostas técnicas 13 , táticas 14 , físicas -associadas ao perfil motor -e fisiológicas 15 a partir de alterações nas configurações, i.e. tamanho do campo 13 , número de jogadores 13 , limitação de toques na bola 16 e superioridade numérica 17 .…”