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Structuring a Program in

Elite Professional Soccer


Gary J. Walker, PhD and Richard Hawkins, PhD
Manchester United Football Club, Manchester, United Kingdom

ABSTRACT training response, such as genetic not going into all matches with optimal
inheritance, training history, biological freshness and strategically placing
THIS ARTICLE DISCUSSES THE
functioning, and stress, both psychoso- greater importance on certain matches
PROCESSES THAT ARE UNDER-
cial and environmental; it is under- may be a risky practice for coaches.
TAKEN BY THE CONDITIONING
stood that there is no “one size fits The challenge at the elite level is clear
COACHES OF ELITE SOCCER
all” approach because individual ath- and was highlighted previously by Iaia
CLUBS WHEN PLANNING THE
letes respond differently to one and Hawkins (12); they suggested that
TRAINING PROGRAM FOR another. Furthermore, identical train- the primary purpose of fitness training
PROFESSIONAL PLAYERS. TO ing sessions performed by the same is not pushing the boundaries of human
SUCCESSFULLY MANAGE THE individual may elicit different re- performance and sustaining the highest
TRAINING REQUIREMENTS OF A sponses due to the transient nature of work rates, but it is more oriented
SQUAD OF PLAYERS THROUGH- biological functioning and the environ- toward keeping the players injury free
OUT A SEASON, IT IS IMPORTANT mental stressors that athletes face. and making them capable of playing
TO STRUCTURE TRAINING competitive games every 3–4 days for
With regard to professional soccer,
APPROPRIATELY USING STRATE- most of the season throughout their
weekly models tend to vary based on
GIES TO IDENTIFY THE INDIVIDUAL whole career. The importance of this
culture and previous experiences of the
NEEDS OF PLAYERS, ENSURING was demonstrated by Carling et al. (6)
management team. Typically, plans are
THAT THOSE REQUIREMENTS who reported a correlation between
based around a program, whereby there
ARE MET WITHIN THE player squad availability and match suc-
are 6–7 days between competitive
CONSTRAINTS OF THE ANNUAL cess in an elite French club for more
matches; however their applicability to
CALENDAR. THE OVERALL AIM IS
successful teams is limited, and they are than 5 seasons. By remaining injury
TO MAXIMIZE SQUAD AVAILABIL- not appropriate for dealing with the real free, the coach was able to select similar
ITY WHILE OPTIMIZING PLAYER planning issues that elite teams must starting lineups more frequently than in
READINESS FOR MATCHES, other seasons, presumably playing with
overcome. The extensive nature of the
ENSURING THAT EACH PLAYER his best team more often, leading to
soccer annual calendar presents a num-
HAS THE PHYSICAL CAPABILITY greater tactical and technical under-
ber of challenges because players of
TO IMPLEMENT THE REQUIRED standing from the players with success-
Europe’s elite teams participate in up
TACTICS SUCCESSFULLY. ful performance outcomes. To achieve
to 220 training sessions and 60 compet-
this, consideration must be given to
itive matches per season. Recently, the
a multitude of factors that impact the
practice of “strategic periodization” has
INTRODUCTION strategies that underpin the decisions
become popular in some sports (23),
eriodization is the strategic that are made on a daily basis over

P
whereby a match difficulty index is cre- the course of a season.
manipulation of training stress ated for each match during the season;
to produce a desired outcome, thus, training volume and intensity can Three key strategies form the basis of
leading to competitive success. A num- be manipulated weekly by the coaching our planning model that is transient,
ber of strategies have been proposed to staff to allow for intentional peaking for depending on the philosophy of the
maximize training adaptation in ath- matches of perceived greatest priority or coach and the individual needs of each
letes, such as linear, conjugate, concur- importance throughout a season. How- player. The coach’s philosophy is of
rent, block, and concentrated models ever, an analysis of the number of
(14); however, there are a number of matches lost for the English Premier
factors that affect an individual’s League winners throughout the previous
KEY WORDS:
planning; soccer; squad management;
Address correspondence to Gary J. Walker, 10 seasons showed that teams lost on
training
gary.walker@manutd.co.uk. average only 4.6 times per season; thus,

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Structuring a Program in Elite Professional Soccer

paramount importance because the preseason or preparation, in-season or frequently receive only 21–28 days off
formation employed, style and tactics competition, and off-season or transition. before returning for a new season.
of play, in attack, defense, and transi- Each of these phases have specific goals A further hurdle with regard to plan-
tion will affect the physical activity pro- and associated challenges with regard to ning preseason training is the tours
files of each position and individual structuring players’ training. The seasonal that elite teams frequently embark on
player during a match. Understanding structure in elite European soccer is mark- before the competition phase.
these profiles is fundamental to edly different from some sports, such as Europe’s elite teams now routinely
develop and optimize the physical American (National Football League) or travel to America, Asia, Africa, and
preparation programs of elite players. Australian Football (Australian Football Australasia to play a number of
The discussion that follows involves League) that are characterized by 5- to matches, with the first taking place
components that impact 1 or more of 6-month seasons, with a long transition/ approximately 10 days after the com-
the 3 strategic pillars identified in off-season phase in the National Football mencement of preseason training. In
Figure 1. Ultimately, by maximizing League and a long preseason phase in the addition, there is a growing tendency
player availability, ensuring that play- Australian Football League to allow time for high-profile clubs to participate in
ers have the physical capabilities to to develop physical qualities before the “showcase” friendlies around the world
carry out the coach’s instructions and commencement of the competitive sea- after the end of the competitive season,
that they begin each match in an opti- son. Elite players of Europe’s soccer teams further increasing the demands placed
mal state of readiness, everything has typically experience a 5- to 6-week pre- upon players. Both preseason and off-
been done from a physical perspective season, followed by a 41- to 42-week in- season training are beyond the scope of
to enhance the probability of success. season with extensive national and inter- this article, so the remainder will dis-
We will begin by discussing planning national travel commitments for teams cuss the considerations that take place
at the annual level before focusing on participating in both domestic and Euro- with regard to planning training during
the weekly plan and ultimately drilling pean Competitions. Frequently, teams the in-season period.
into the daily training themes and that are new to entering European com-
examples of specific exercises. The petitions have demonstrated an inability
WEEKLY STRUCTURE
importance of off-field conditioning is to manage a debut European season
Designing the ideal training week in-
also discussed, and how this is inte- together with maintaining domestic form.
volves the consideration of numerous
grated into the planning process and An additional potential confounder is the
sources of information (Figure 2). Gen-
finally how issues related to squad off-season “summer period” and whether
erally, the aim is to overload game
management can be addressed. players are involved in an international
components in such a way that
tournament. This affects the decisions
advances in fitness are made or simply
made with regard to the recovery/resto-
maintained, without compromising
ANNUAL CALENDAR ration period players require before re-
readiness for the next game. Flexibility
When planning conditioning pro- turning to preseason training or in some
is required in any plan: the combina-
grams for soccer players, the annual cases after the start of the new season.
tion of objective data, experience and
calendar is divided into 3 phases: In these cases, international players
intuition driving processes, and a suc-
cessful outcome blending both art and
science.
The task is relatively simple when
5–7 days exist between competitive
games; however, the number of
these “free weeks,” weeks in which
there is no midweek game, are few
and far between during successful
seasons; there may be in the region
of 4–6 weeks during the season that
there is an opportunity to apply such
a model. Figure 3 depicts a potential
weekly plan through which the
majority of player conditioning re-
quirements can be appropriately tar-
geted, ensuring adequate
stimulation to maximize competi-
tion readiness. However, the addi-
Figure 1. Three key strategic planning pillars. tion of a midweek game typically

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and integrating them into a weekly
structure enables players to be trained
at an appropriate level, avoiding train-
ing monotony, while also ensuring
recovery and optimizing player readi-
ness for matches. Although there is
a requirement for flexibility, the train-
ing categories identified can be
conveniently grouped to produce
a daily theme.
The 2 key daily themes utilized can be
classified as “extensive soccer” and
“intensive soccer” and incorporate the
following:
 Extensive soccer aims to reflect typical
match demands, utilizing large areas
enabling high speeds to be attained.
Speed components can also be added
to the beginning of the session with
specific speed work or soccer-specific
drills, such as speed finishing or wave
attacks being utilized.
Figure 2. Considerations when planning player physical training needs.  Intensive soccer overloads the mus-
culoskeletal system and the various
energy systems, incorporating more
results in only 1 day to focus on con- effectively utilized to ensure that the acceleration, deceleration, and
ditioning for players who were not desired goals are met; the luxury of change of direction components of
involved in the previous game. In a 2-day recovery period, 2-day acqui- soccer-specific speed. This area in-
this situation, the requirements of sition period, and a 2-day tapering corporates small-sided games, which
individual players must be consid- period leading into the next game is are modified games played in
ered, as well as the conditioning rarely a reality. reduced playing areas, using fewer
focus for that particular stage of There are various training categories players and adapted rules (10). By
the season. that can be combined and incorpo- manipulating pitch dimensions,
rated into a daily training theme number of players, rules, coach
DAILY TRAINING THEME whereby the majority of conditioning encouragement, goalkeepers, and
It is clearly evident that time is limited components can be targeted alongside work to rest ratios, the intensity of
and that the available time that players tactical preparation requirements training can be appropriately manip-
can be exposed to training must be (Figure 4). Developing daily plans ulated. Depending on the stage of
the season and the requirements of
individual players, these sessions can
be supplemented with various con-
ditioning runs if required.
A pertinent discussion here involves
the incorporation of off-field strength
and conditioning practices into the
weekly planning template, presented
in Figure 3. Depending on the coach
philosophy and the strength and con-
ditioning culture at the club, players are
prescribed off-field conditioning to
improve their strength, power, or
resilience/robustness as appropriate.
A detailed description of off-field
conditioning will follow, but it is
Figure 3. Potential weekly planning template. important that off-field strength and

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Structuring a Program in Elite Professional Soccer

Wednesday, in which it is known that


maximal running velocities are reduced
on smaller-sized pitches. It is this con-
stant communication and management
of on-field and off-field training
stimuli that is required to successfully
integrate different physical condition-
ing components.

IDENTIFYING DRILL
REQUIREMENTS
The requirement at the elite level from
a physical perspective is to prioritize
the individual requirements and imple-
Figure 4. Training categories targeting specific conditioning components.
ment the necessary drills to impose the
desired demands to ensure that the
conditioning programs are carefully For example, in the on-field training player status is optimal. Field-based
planned, based on a thorough needs scenario presented in Figure 3, if training can be utilized to induce the
analysis of each player and delivered a player/squad performed a leg appropriate stressors to ensure the
in accordance with the athlete and strength or injury prevention program energy systems of players adapt and
coach’s goals, together with the consisting of exercises with high eccen- are best equipped to withstand the
demanding fixture schedule. Good tric demand, such as the Nordic ham- competitive demands of the game,
communication and liaison with the string exercise, there may be an presented in Table 1. Through an in-
technical coaching staff is vital to increased risk of injury when perform- depth understanding of the training
combine off-field strength and condi- ing extensive soccer drills incorporat- parameters taxed with certain drills,
tioning work with on-field physical, ing high-speed running elements a better appreciation of the physiolog-
technical, and tactical training, during the following day’s training ical objectives to target to stimulate the
to minimize the interference effect of (19). By rearranging the weekly plan- physical components of match perfor-
concurrent training (16) and to sched- ning template, extensive soccer condi- mance is possible, ensuring that the
ule training such that the player’s risk tioning would be conducted before the training load imposed on individuals
of injury is not increased in subsequent strength session on Tuesday with the is appropriate for the intended physio-
sessions. intensive soccer session performed on logical and performance adaptations.

Table 1
Physical demands of the game by position in the English Premier League (data combined from 1, 4, and 5)
Position Total distance High-intensity Sprint distance No. of Six season Other movement patterns
covered (m) distance (.19.8 km/h) (.26.2 km/h) sprints increase in (specific to that position)
high-intensity
running (%)

Center back 9,896 612 153 36 33 More back, sideward


movement, and
jumping
Full back 10,730 1,115 288 60 35 More longer sprints
Center 11,495 953 217 55 30 More forward movements
midfielder and 0–908 turns
Wide 11,612 1,214 331 68 27 More diagonal and curved
midfielder movements
Attacker 10,320 1,026 312 55 24 Diagonal and curved runs,
more 270–3608 turns
Note that this contains average data, and there is high match-to-match variability for all positions due to factors, such as team tactics, ball
possession, match importance, and status of match (i.e., winning or losing).

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Coaching science plays an integral role achieve the desired aims when mainte- determination of what training is
in this process, taking advantage of the nance is required; however, when spe- required. Multiple decisions of this
technological developments that have cific outcomes are desired and the aim nature are constantly undertaken to
occurred to add a high level of objec- is to trigger the specific physiological identify what specific players need in
tivity to what was previously predom- systems understood to be limiting fac- the next session.
inantly subjective. By implementing tors to performance, holistic training Figure 5 shows the potential thought
suitable monitoring strategies, the whereby many mechanisms are taxed process practitioners go through when
impact of sessions on individual player to lesser degrees can be found wanting, planning specific drills and sessions.
readiness can be predicted before the with successful outcomes attained by First, the proximity to the previous
event. Also, the adoption of ongoing focusing on individuals and their and the next game will dictate the tem-
monitoring strategies help in reducing specific positional demands. In most plate for the session, and the expected
the injury risk by optimizing exposure environments, a blend of both ap- physical demands of the technical and
to specific external load parameters; proaches is used, sometimes being tactical work planned need to be under-
the challenge is to establish what driven by philosophical principles stood. Following this, decisions can be
the minimal effective dose is with re- rather than player physiology and indi- made for individuals. Those players
gard to output in training to achieve vidual needs. who are not involved in the next game
the desired overload and protective are usually returning from injury and
effect, establishing whether they can PLAYER REQUIREMENTS AND tend to require greater emphasis on
be achieved via the planned drills that GAME PROXIMITY developing the various energy systems
have a tactical and/or technical focus The physical components that players and explosiveness, whereas those
or whether there is a need for addi- possess cover a range of physiological involved in games generally fit into
tional individual work. systems, predominantly neurological, fewer categories as shown; there is
There continues to be a debate sur- musculoskeletal, and metabolic, to a potential to exert a greater load on
rounding this last point and how best varying degrees. There are many con- players in the early part of the training
to achieve the conditioning objectives siderations to be undertaken when week, whereas when the next compet-
of players. It is known that fitness per- designing drills, and it is not possible itive game is within 48 hours, the
formance in team sports does not rely to concentrate on every quality all of emphasis is predominantly on quality
predominantly on the physical compo- the time. Priorities will change with rather than inducing an overload.
nents but is influenced by the techni- different players, and positions and
cal, tactical, and psychological qualities team tactical requirements are also
likely to become a factor. PLANNING FOR G-2/G-1
(3). The development of fitness there-
fore, when possible, should be inte- Depending on the individual player, In-season, due to the scheduling and
grated into a holistic approach to the requirements to develop a specific the number of games players are pre-
training where the conditioning ele- attribute will differ. Longitudinal mon- paring for, it is often difficult to signif-
ments are developed simultaneously, itoring of player activity utilizing the icantly develop all physical attributes.
in combination with the technical, tac- various technological systems available Such qualities however can be honed
tical, and psychological components. informs practitioners of what players via minimal exposure, ensuring that
This is the ideal, and it is possible to have done, thereby assisting in the players are suitably prepared for com-
petition. From a training perspective, it
has been highlighted that any form of
overload is difficult; however, short,
explosive, high-intensity drills with
small groups and/or individuals can
provide a suitable stimulus, both men-
tally and physically. Figure 6 provides
an example of a repeated sprint drill
designed for a center midfield player,
and Figure 7 shows a speed/agility
exercise performed with a striker. The
intensity of the session is presented
below, and the work to rest ratio is
the same; however, the volume (num-
ber of sets and reps) will be dictated by
the proximity to the previous and sub-
sequent games, together with other
Figure 5. Identifying individual physical training focus. variables presented in Figure 2.

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Structuring a Program in Elite Professional Soccer

Figure 6. Repeated sprint drill for a center midfielder.

PLANNING FOR $G-3 technical and tactical work undertaken, fundamental at the top level and is
When players are more than 72 hours knowledge of individual player profiles associated with many of the attributes
before a game, it is usually possible to and individual needs analysis will direct that elite players possess. It is therefore
target any physical component. the practitioner to the appropriate logical to target such qualities via high-
Depending on the content of the quality to overload. Explosivity is speed/explosive-orientated drills rather

Figure 7. Reactive speed/agility drill for striker.

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jumping, sprinting, and change of
direction ability (25). At all competitive
levels, these “high-powered actions”
can prove to be the difference between
winning and losing; therefore, it is
important that players are prescribed
appropriate conditioning programs
that can improve these components.
The challenge in-season is to maintain
or improve strength and power quali-
ties with limited time to perform
strength and conditioning and with
accumulating levels of fatigue. The
Figure 8. Speed-endurance drill for a full back. reader is directed to Strudwick and
Walker (24) for a more detailed
description as to how this can be
than traditional steady-state running, aerobic endurance drill, typically per-
achieved.
even where energy system develop- formed with a center back. As previous,
ment is required; desirable adaptations the volume of the session will be dic- Increasing strength is also associated
can be attained via repetition of high- tated by individual factors outlined in with decreased injury rates (18). In
speed runs as described by Iaia and Figures 2 and 5. European elite teams, muscle injuries
Bangsbo (11). Additionally, this type constitute 31% of all injuries, with
of training ensures that speeds that OFF-FIELD CONDITIONING 92% of injuries affecting the 4 major
are commonly attained during elite Match analysis of modern elite soccer muscle groups of the lower limb: ham-
match-play are replicated, as well as players has demonstrated that the cur- strings (37%), adductors (23%), quadri-
incorporating high accelerations and rent game demands a greater inci- ceps (19%), and calf muscles (13%) (9).
decelerations both of which have a role dence of explosive events than In women, most injuries occur to the
in injury prevention (7). Figure 8 dem- previously. Increased muscle strength ankle, knee, and thigh with higher rates
onstrates an example of a speed- is associated with enhanced force- of ankle sprains and more serious inju-
endurance drill designed for a full back, time characteristics, such as rate of ries to the anterior cruciate ligament
and Figure 9 provides a high-intensity force development, mechanical power, than in men (17). Several clubs pre-
scribe preventive strategies to reduce
the risk of noncontact injury (20),
based around FIFA’s 11+ program of
core stability, balance, and neuromus-
cular control exercises. To increase the
resilience and robustness of the player,
specific exercises to increase the eccen-
tric strength of the hamstrings and ad-
ductors have been proposed, with
demonstrated changes to muscle archi-
tecture (2,13). It has still not been elu-
cidated as to the minimum effective
dose to provide preventive benefit; ses-
sions should be strategically planned
according to athlete needs in accor-
dance with the on-field program goals.
When a player gets injured, the condi-
tioning coach has a number of roles to
play; to train the player to improve his
or her ability to tolerate the demands
of training and match-play, to make
gains in other areas of physical perfor-
mance, and to strengthen previously
injured areas. Although there is no
Figure 9. Aerobic high-intensity drill for center back. definitive evidence to suggest that

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Structuring a Program in Elite Professional Soccer

strengthening previously injured areas stimulus for the players. Also, a prepa- potential weekly training template
alone prevents reinjury, it has been ratory tool, the warm-up can be struc- was presented in Figure 3, but in real-
demonstrated that increasing eccentric tured to provide benefit for long-term ity, weekly planning is dictated by the
hamstring strength was associated athletic development, providing regu- fixture schedule together with the
with reduced future hamstring injury lar exposures to key fundamental current fitness status of the players,
risk in a cohort of previously injured movement patterns to develop move- which is often different for each indi-
Australian soccer players (22). It there- ment efficiency. Expanding upon the vidual. Therefore, it is logical to include
fore seems prudent for the strength and 11+, an overview of a 20-minute squad flexibility in the conditioning program
conditioning practitioner to develop an “warm-up” circuit conducted before and tailor weekly templates to the spe-
athlete sustainability program for play- training twice per week is presented cific requirements at that time, instead
ers to follow for a period when they in Table 2. Players work for 5 minutes of creating a single standard weekly
return to training and match-play after in each group and then move to the program.
injury. This period depends on each next group until all exercises are com- Generally, teams are faced with the
player’s injury history and nature, and pleted. Exercise selection, sets, repeti- following scenarios: 1 match per week
for some serious injuries, it may tions, and resistance will depend upon or 2 matches per week (frequently this
continue indefinitely throughout the the age and experience of the player involves playing 3 matches in an 8-day
player’s career. and stage of season. period, i.e., Saturday-Wednesday-
It is important for the strength and Saturday). The latter scenario provides
conditioning coach to look for win- SQUAD MANAGEMENT the biggest challenge to the condition-
dows within the season such as injury, The physical, technical, and psycho- ing coach because there requires a del-
suspension, or free weeks to maximize logical demands imposed upon elite icate balance of training for starters,
off-field conditioning opportunities. players are largely dependent upon substitutes, and nonsquad players.
Furthermore, as time is extremely lim- team success, with an increased num- There are a large number of strategies
ited, maximizing the use of daily ber of games associated with European that can be used to structure training in
warm-ups may provide a key “training” and domestic Cup Competitions. A this situation; thus, it is not possible to

Table 2
Squad injury reduction warm-up strategy
Area Rationale Sample exercises

Group Glute activation/ Strengthen the glutes, groins, and hamstrings Glute mini-band walks, med ball squat, lunge,
1 movement with functional movements using light or no lateral squat, single leg romanian deadlift.
mechanics resistance. The inability to activate gluteal
group is associated with injuries such as lower
back pain, hamstring strain, and anterior knee
pain.
Group Torso stability/ To improve the players’ ability to transfer force Torso stability: front and side plank exercises and
2 strengthening from the ground to the extremities, while variations, posterior stability exercises.
preventing uncontrolled movements of spine/
pelvis. Torso strengthening: (a) antiextension exercises;
movements of arm and leg with limited
movement of torso, (b) rotational and
antirotational exercises, producing and
resisting against rotary force.
Group Proprioception/ To improve the ability of the body to land and Bilateral landings in place, bilateral landings with
3 landing stabilize correctly, yet provide a foundation movement, unilateral landings in place,
mechanics from which to progress to more explosive unilateral landings with movement. Intensity
plyometric movements. A recurrence of can be increased by increasing height/
inadequate landings may lead to ankle, knee, resistance/surface instability.
and hip joint injury.
Group Hip mobility The ability to maintain strength through a range Hurdle overs (hip flexion/extension), hurdle
4 of motion is important for soccer players to adduction/abduction (bent/straight leg),
prevent injury and to provide a platform to resisted leg swings (front-back, side-side),
produce power. hurdle unders, and slideboard adduction.

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Table 3
Training requirements for 3 groups within the team during a congested fixture period

Playing squad Substitutes Non-playing squad


Saturday Match Match High-Intensity aerobic/individual
Sunday Rest or recovery Intensive football Intensive football
a
Monday Individual requirements Speed/power Speed/power
Tuesday Reactivity/activation Reactivity/activation Reactivity/activation/top-up
Wednesday Match Match Day off/rest
Thursday Recovery Speed/power Speed/power
a
Friday Reactivity/activation Reactivity/activation Reactivity/activation
Saturday Match Match Individual requirements
a
Strategies adapted depending upon individual status of the player.

detail all potential scenarios. A generic training errors are made. Players the high-intensity running and sprint
overview of the type of training that respond differently to matches and requirements for players by position
each group within the team can per- the accumulation of matches, and thus, during a match, to provide the condi-
form is detailed in Table 3. some players may be fully recovered tioning coach with a guide as to the
yet others may require additional most important physical parameters
PLAYING SQUAD recovery strategies. By accurately ac- to replicate during these sessions.
When 2 matches are played per week, cessing the fatigue status of each player Without this, regular substitutes or
it is more difficult to perform addi- (26), flexible and individualized recom- nonplaying squad members have the
tional physical training because the mendations can be provided to the potential to lose their conditioning
majority of the time is dedicated to coaching staff. Once again, it is clear level over a period, yet these players
develop game readiness, tactical prep- that there is no “one size fits all” are important throughout a season
aration, and player freshness. The first approach to be applied in this complex from the perspective of squad rotation.
decision to be made is whether to give decision-making situation; knowledge Their training load must be sufficient to
the players a day off after a match or to of individual player capabilities is allow them to cope with the physical
perform a formal recovery session at crucial. requirements of match-play because
the training ground. There is a balanc- abrupt and severe increases in work-
ing act between preserving psycholog- load (due from switching from nonplay
SUBSTITUTES AND NONPLAYING
ical freshness among the squad while SQUAD to regular play) may enhance the risk
also allowing players some quality For the substitutes and nonplaying of injury occurrence.
time with their families and ensuring squad, the day after a game is a crucial Communication between technical
a competitive focus is maintained. Fac- conditioning day to ensure that players and conditioning staff is extremely
tors including the number of consecu- are physiologically prepared for important with regard to the manage-
tive days without a day off, previous games. In this situation, training usu- ment of these players because it is vital
long-distance travel, timing to the next ally consists of high-intensity condi- to maximize conditioning opportuni-
match, stage of the season, subsequent tioning work through small-sided ties from a prematch, matchday, and
fixture importance, together with the games with additional individual drills post-match day perspective. If the
coach’s experience, and knowledge of as appropriate. It is important to match-day squad is planned in
the wellness status of the squad may be ensure that these players receive com- advance and the conditioning coach
used to formulate a decision. petitive match minutes in reserve team is aware, nonsquad players can per-
It is extremely important to regularly fixtures, but where that is not possible, form individual conditioning work
monitor players to determine how individuals must receive “top-up” train- (on- and/or off-field) after the rela-
they respond to the imposed demands ing in which high-intensity speed tively light prematch day training ses-
of match-play; the 48 hours after and speed-endurance runs are per- sion. Furthermore, following matches,
a match may be the best time to mon- formed at the correct time as high- substitute players can perform high-
itor fatigue status in the team because lighted in Figure 5. The reader is intensity conditioning work on the
it is during this time that the greatest directed to Table 2 for an overview of pitch, followed by key preventive

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Structuring a Program in Elite Professional Soccer

strength and conditioning exercises in are clearly important components that Implications for injury prevention.
the stadium. This is particularly useful support the decision-making processes Br J Sports Med 51: 469–477, 2017.
if the day following a match is given off that blends “art” with “science.” 3. Bradley PS, Carling C, Archer D, Roberts J,
as rest, to ensure that no conditioning Dodds A, Di Mascio M, Paul D, Gomez Diaz
To summarize, the article has high- A, Peart D, and Krustrup P. The effect of
opportunities are missed. lighted the processes that are under- playing formation on high-intensity running
taken by conditioning coaches of elite and technical profiles in English FA Premier
SUMMARY soccer clubs when planning the training League soccer matches. J Sports Sci 29:

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Conflicts of Interest and Source of Funding:
performance (21) and significantly The authors report no conflicts of interest 6. Carling C, Le Gall F, McCall A, Nédélec M,
increased injury occurrence (8), factors and no source of funding. and Dupont G. Squad management, injury
and match performance in a professional
that could result in a team being less
soccer team over a championship-winning
successful; strategies therefore are season. Eur J Sport Sci 15: 573–582,
required to combat these issues. In Gary J. Walker 2015.
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