Descriptive Analysis of functional capacities of soccer athletes between 16 and 23 years old from Alagoas
Soccer, Aerobic power; Anaerobic power; Strength; Physical assessments;
Soccer is a sport that has many fans all over the world. In Brazil, it is the most practiced sport, and due to its popularity, it is part of the country's national culture. It is an intermittent sport, where athletes are required to the maximum in terms of their functional capacities that are decisive for the game, among them: strength, aerobic power and anaerobic power. In the state of Alagoas, where there is little investment in youth soccer categories, and physical performance levels are well below the national elite, it is therefore necessary to evaluate these athletes and understand their profile in relation to these functional capacities. The objective of this study is to build a normative analysis framework for functional capacities considered decisive in soccer based on the reality of youth players in the state of Alagoas. The participants in this study were 208 soccer players (age 19.4 ± 2.8 years, height 179.8 ± 15.5 cm, weight 76.3 ± 21.7 kg, body fat ratio 13.4 ± 7.3%). The athletes underwent a battery of physical tests over two days. The maximum voluntary isometric contraction test was used to measure strength, the yo-yo endurance test was used to measure aerobic power, the wingate test was used to measure anaerobic power, and the CM vertical jump test was used to measure jump height. Test results: Average VO2max: 46.0 ± 8.1 (ml/kg/min), Max AN Power (average): 903.2 ± 381.0 (W), Average AN Power (average): 578.2 ± 209.8 (W), Minimum AN Power (average): 367.5 ± 134.1 (W), Fatigue Index (average): 62.7 ± 25.5 (%max), Average MVC right leg: 64.10 ± 26.8 (kgf), Average MVC left leg: 64.1 ± 26.6 (kgf), Average jump height: 0.30 ± 0.10 (cm). Physical assessments were also performed to verify anthropometric characteristics and body composition: body mass, height, fat percentage, and to prepare the normative analysis reference instrument, the percentile was stratified and divided into five classification intervals. We can conclude that this normative table is of fundamental importance for physical trainers and soccer coaches who work with these under-17 and under-23 categories, knowing the level of physical performance of the athlete from Alagoas will allow for better training planning, detecting talents, preventing injuries and also forming teams that perform above the average for the state of Alagoas in relation to functional capacities with the goal of being champions.