The influence of the offside rule on players' positional dynamics in soccer small-sided games.

BACKGROUND: Previous studies on soccer small-sided games (SSGs) chose between with and without offside rule conditions without evidence-based criteria. The current study aimed to compare the positional dynamics of 3v3 SSGs with and without the offside rule. METHODS: Twenty-four Brazilian U-17 national-level soccer players were recruited. They were split into eight teams and played SSGs with and without the offside rule . Positional data were gathered by a Global Positioning System, and teams' length, width, the length per width ratio (LPWratio), stretch index and players' spatial exploration index were calculated. Data were compared between the experimental conditions by a paired t-test. RESULTS: Results showed that SSGs with the offside rule presented lower values of length (~16.63%, large effect), the LPWratio (~19.74%, large effect), and players' spatial exploration (~4.13%, small-to-moderate effect). CONCLUSION: We conclude that the offside rule impacts players' positional behavior in SSGs, inducing a less exploratory behavior mainly in the width axis. For this reason, we recommend caution when interpreting previous results on SSG when the offside rule was not applied since adopting this rule might elicit different responses to the players . Coaches can manipulate this rule aiming to achieve specific tactical goals for the training session.

Changes in tactical behavior during small-sided and conditioned games performed within a training session / Mudança no comportamento tático durante uma sessão de treinamento com pequenos jogos

Abstract This study aimed to verify the acute effects of 3vs.3 soccer small-sided and conditioned games (SSCG) on the tactical behavior of youth soccer athletes within one training session. Twenty-four soccer athletes (U-13 and U-14 categories) from a professional club participated in the study. They played four 4-minute 3vs.3 SSCG with 4 minutes of passive recovery in-between. All SSCG were recorded and players' tactical behavior was analyzed using the System of Tactical Assessment in Soccer. We compared the frequencies and percentages of successful tactical principles over the four 3vs.3 SSCG bouts performed within the training session. Results showed an increased number of defensive unity actions (p= 0.005; large effect size) and a higher percentage of successful defensive principles (p<0.001; moderate effect size) in the fourth bout. We can conclude that players' tactical behaviors change over the SSCG bouts performed within one training session. This suggests that players adapt their tactical behavior according to the tactical problems presented in the SSCG performed within the training session. We can suggest that the long-term improvement in the tactical skills of soccer athletes may be based on these small acute changes in tactical behavior observed in each training session.

Resumo O objetivo do estudo foi verificar o efeito do pequeno jogo 3vs.3 sobre o comportamento tático de jovens jogadores de futebol em uma sessão de treinamento. Participaram do estudo 24 jogadores das categorias sub-13 e sub-14 de um clube professional. Realizaram-se quatro séries de quatro minutos do pequeno jogo 3vs.3 com quatro minutos de pausa passiva entre as séries. Todos os jogos foram filmados e analisou-se o comportamento tático por meio do Sistema de Avaliação Tática no Futebol. Foram comparados a frequência e o percentual de acertos dos princípios táticos nas quatro séries dentro de uma sessão de treinamento. Os resultados evidenciaram aumento do número das ações de unidade defensiva (p= 0.005; tamanho do efeito grande) e do percentual de acerto dos princípios defensivos (p<0.001; tamanho do efeito moderado). Conclui-se haver mudança do comportamento tático durante as séries de pequenos jogos realizados dentro de uma sessão de treinamento. Sugere-se que os jogadores adaptam seus comportamentos conforme os problemas táticos emergentes nos pequenos jogos. Além disso, sugere-se que a melhoria da capacidade tática de jogadores de futebol possa se basear nestas pequenas mudanças agudas do comportamento tático observadas dentro de cada sessão de treinamento.