The Functional Movement Screen total score and physical performance in elite male collegiate soccer players

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to compare the differences in physical performance of elite male collegiate soccer players according to the Functional Movement Screen (FMS) total scores and to investigate the association between the FMS total score and physical performance. A total of 20 elite male collegiate soccer players (mean age, 19.6 ± 0.7 years; height, 173.4± 4.4 cm; body weight, 66.9± 7.3 kg; and body mass index, 22.0± 2.0 kg/m 2) participated in the present study. The subjects were divided into two groups: the high FMS (FMS total score ≥ 14 points, n= 10) and low FMS (FMS total score < 14 points, n= 10). All participants completed 10-m and 30-m sprint tests, the arrowhead agility test (right and left), and a coordination test. The statistical methods used to verify the study results were the independent sample t-test and Kendall's Tau b correlation test. There were significant differences between the high and low FMS groups in the 10-m (P= 0.014) and 30-m sprint (P= 0.002) and arrowhead agility tests (right, P= 0.039). Conversely, there were no significant differences in the arrowhead agility (left) and coordination tests between the two groups (P> 0.05). Moreover, the FMS total score was found to have significant negative correlations with the 10-m sprint (r=-0.444, P= 0.017), 30-m sprint (r=-0.425, P= 0.016), and arrowhead agility tests (right, r=-0.389, P= 0.023). These results suggest that higher FMS total scores could have a positive effect on the physical performance of the players.

Multiple athletic performances, maturation, and Functional Movement Screen total and individual scores across different age categories in young soccer players

“…Similar trend was also recorded in another studies ( Parchmann and McBride, 2011 ; Silva et al, 2017 ; Zalai et al, 2015 ) where no association between FMS total score and physical performance was obtained. However, our findings are in contrast to other studies where significant association between FMS total score and physical performance was recorded ( Lee et al, 2019 ; Lloyd et al, 2015 ). It should be noted that possible discrepancies between the studies may lie in the fact that different physical tests across these studies were performed and importantly, mean total score recorded in our study in each group was still above 15 points which indicate good results and reflect the reality in our age groups, whereas in this case, we were not able to divide players according to the low or high score as elsewhere ( Lee et al, 2019 ).…”

“…However, our findings are in contrast to other studies where significant association between FMS total score and physical performance was recorded ( Lee et al, 2019 ; Lloyd et al, 2015 ). It should be noted that possible discrepancies between the studies may lie in the fact that different physical tests across these studies were performed and importantly, mean total score recorded in our study in each group was still above 15 points which indicate good results and reflect the reality in our age groups, whereas in this case, we were not able to divide players according to the low or high score as elsewhere ( Lee et al, 2019 ). And probably due to the abovementioned situation and/or results may be that total score is less sensitive indicator of physical performance.…”

“…The seven basic tests include: deep overhead squat (DS), hurdle step (HS), in-line lunge (ILL), shoulder mobility (SM), active straight leg raise (ASLR), trunk stability push-up (TSPU), rotary stability (RS) ( Cook, 2011 ). Several research studies examined the FMS in relation to injury prevention ( Kiesel et al, 2007 ; Letafatkar et al, 2014 ; Newton et al, 2017 ) and different performance characteristics ( Lee et al, 2019 ; Lloyd et al, 2015 ; Lockie et al, 2015 ; Parchman and McBride, 2011 ). Among the mentioned studies (besides the others) a considerable part of the studies has been done on soccer players including prestigious soccer academies and clubs ( Marques et al, 2017 ; McCall et al, 2015 ; Newton et al, 2017 ).…”

“…Similarly, Smith and Hanlon (2017) found no significant difference between FMS, and noncontact injuries in soccer players. In regards of potential association of the FMS to performance characteristics, several studies found significant associations of either total score or subset of the FMS tests in soccer players ( Lee et al, 2019 ; Lloyd et al, 2015 ; Silva et al, 2017 ) but some did not ( Parchmann and McBride, 2011 ; Zalai et al, 2015 ), however the study by Parchman and McBride (2011) was done on golfers. Collectively, from the results of the abovementioned studies, it seems that individual scores are more able to detect potential associations between the FMS, and athletic performances ( Silva et al, 2017 ) which could be explained by different subtests that assess several areas not all of which may be performance related.…”

Relationship between functional movement screen and physical performance in elite young soccer players

“…Few studies have searched associations between FMS final score and performance variables in soccer athletes [16,18,24]. Lee et al [24] verified that FMS score could affect speed and agility of elite male collegiate soccer players and Lloyd et al [18] found moderate and high correlation between FMS total score and strength, power and agility in young soccer athletes. However, Silva et al [16] did not demons-trate a relation between FMS total score and performance variables, although the authors presented small associations with FMS individual scores in U-16 and U-19.…”