The effect of three different pre-match warm-up structures on male professional soccer players’ physical fitness

Introduction

Soccer is considered as an intermittent team-sport (Altmann et al., 2020), characterized by the combination of a large number of high-intensity actions (e.g., accelerations, decelerations, changing of direction, jumping or kicking the ball) with low-intensity actions (Krustrup & Bangsbo, 2001; Nobari et al., 2023). Per match, soccer players typically cover a total distance of 10–13 km (Modric et al., 2022), in which players might cover a distance of 190–185 m at sprint and reach a maximum velocity of 31 km h⁻¹. Additionally, soccer players cover near to 418–568 m per match at high-speed running (i.e., 21–24 km h⁻¹) (Nobari et al., 2022; Rey et al., 2023) and perform around 100–150 accelerations (Varley & Aughey, 2013). These results support the notion that soccer is a highly demanding sport (Modric et al., 2022), with variations in demands based on playing position or age (Sal de Rellán-Guerra et al., 2019). Given this, the pre-match warm-up is considered a key strategy in soccer programs, so optimizing it might be essential for soccer’s player (Olivares-Jabalera et al., 2021). Warm-up is intended to help achieve optimal performance (McGowan et al., 2015) as well as a reduced risk of injury due to increasing muscle temperature, metabolic reactions, blood flow, nerve conductivity, anaerobic energy provision, oxygen consumption and force expression (Bishop, 2003a; Bishop, 2003b). Furthermore, several studies (Bishop, 2003b; Bishop, 2003a; McGowan et al., 2015; Yanci et al., 2019) have concluded that warm-up not only prepares the player physically but also have positive psychological effects such as self-confidence and concentration. Therefore, the aim of the warm-up would be twofold: (i) to prepare the players physically and mentally for the competition (Bishop, 2003a; Fradkin, Zazryn & Smoliga, 2010) and (ii) to prevent injuries (Bishop, 2003b).

Currently, many professional soccer teams follow warm up guidelines provides by programs such as FIFA 11 + prevention programme (Nuhu et al., 2021) or the Sportsmetrics Warm-up for Injury Prevention and Performance (Grandstrand et al., 2006). These warm-up protocols typically include running, static and dynamic stretching (Fletcher & Monte-Colombo, 2010), neuromuscular activities to prevent injury, high-intensity performance and post-activation exercises, and exercises with specific tactical objectives (Bizzini et al., 2013; Chiu et al., 2022; Nuhu et al., 2021). The aim of these warm-ups is to progress from less specific to more game-specific tasks to enhance performance (Thapa et al., 2023). On the other hand, some authors have suggested that a warm-up should begin with a general cardiovascular phase combined with dynamic stretching, and finish with sport-specific actions (Sander et al., 2013; Taylor, Weston & Portas, 2013) in order to stimulate the main systems and organs involved during the training session or during matches, through the reproduction of sporting gestures similar to competition (Bishop, 2003b; Wakeling, 2004). However, several variables related to warm-up configuration must be considered. Regarding warm-up duration, some authors found that both short warm-up and long warm-up were equally effective on repeated sprint performance (Van den Tillaar, Lerberg & Von Heimburg, 2019; Van den Tillaar & Von Heimburg, 2016). Specifically, Taylor, Weston & Portas (2013) concluded that it is more practical to perform a short warm-up which will allow the remaining time to be used for tactical preparation before the match. Other variables such as duration (Yanci et al., 2019), intensity (Patti et al., 2022; Zois et al., 2011; Zois, Bishop & Aughey, 2015) or rest protocols between warm-up and performance (Dawson et al., 1997) have been analyzed, obtaining that the short warm-up (i.e., 8 min) is the only one that improves acceleration without increase related to RPE. However, none of the aforementioned studies have specifically analyzed pre-match warm-up. In this regard, Bishop (2003a) argued that the content, intensity and duration of warm-up should vary according to the physical and physiological demands of the competition, so the study of the effects of different warm-up structures would be guaranteed.

Given the lack of consensus regarding the optimal configuration of pre-match warm-up strategies during soccer matches (Dawson et al., 1997; Patti et al., 2022; Yanci et al., 2019; Zois et al., 2011; Zois, Bishop & Aughey, 2015), the purpose of this study was to analyze the effects of three pre-match warm-up structures on the physical condition of male professional soccer players. Based on articles mentioned above, we hypothesize that the order of the exercises during the warm-up can have significant differences in RPE and match performance.

Materials & Methods

Results

In Table 1 differences in physical test and RPE regarding the applied warm-up are presented. Significant differences ( p < 0.05) in ball velocity and RPE between WU1 and WU3 were observed. However, no significant differences were reported in the other variables and warm-up modalities.

Discussion

The aim of this study was to analyze the effects of three pre-match warm-up structures on the physical condition of male professional soccer players. This research holds significance for strength and conditioning coaches since it might provide valuable information on which pre-match warm-up structure is the most suitable for enhancing soccer players’ match performance. Moreover, it has not yet been analyzed in professional soccer players. Remarkable results were found on WU1 and WU3 comparison, with better results in Ball-speed and RPE in WU3. In addition, there were no significant differences in the other variables and between other warm-up structures.

Our study revealed no significant difference in the time to cover a 5 m distance (SP5) and time to cover a 20 m distance (SP20) regarding any of the warm-up structures. Despite this, the obtained findings provide valuable information, since any strategy that increases sprinting ability in elite soccer is of great interest to the strength and conditioning coaches, due to the great influence of this variable on soccer performance, being the most frequent action that precede a goal (Faude et al., 2017). Regarding CMJ, non-significant differences were observed between the three types of warm-ups. Similarly, no significant differences in the 15-m ball dribbling agility test (Ag) were observed between the three warm-up structures. Sheppard & Young (2006) highlighted that this ability is influenced by balance, strength level, flexibility and muscular coordination. In addition, in this study agility was measured with the Ag, which in turn has a close relationship with technical skills such as dribbling and the sprint-15m (Mujika et al., 2009), which could influence the obtained results.

Our findings revealed significant differences in ball velocity between WU1 and WU3, indicating that WU3 improved the player’s performance. This result can be attributed to the post-activation performance enhancement phenomenon, where an increment in voluntary strength production has been observed shortly after high muscle activation demands (Blazevich & Babault, 2019). Additionally, Ali et al. (2007) concluded that shooting performance remains consistent throughout the 90 min of the match, suggesting that a warm-up that activates this skill from the beginning could significantly impact the overall result. Coaches must consider this finding, since fast ball striking leads to a shorter reaction time of the opposing goalkeeper, ultimately increasing the likelihood of scoring goals (Anzer, Bauer & Brefeld, 2021). Therefore, it would be relevant for the success in professional soccer, as the primary objective in this sport is to score more goals than the opponent (Russell, Benton & Kingsley, 2010).

In terms of RPE, significant differences were observed between WU1 and WU3, with a lower RPE in WU3. This finding holds great relevance since RPE reflects the subjective perception of professional soccer players regarding to a specific task. Previous studies (Van den Tillaar, Lerberg & Von Heimburg, 2019; Van den Tillaar & Von Heimburg, 2016; Yanci et al., 2019) concluded that RPE tends to increase with the duration of the warm-up; however, these studies did not consider the order of exercises. Upon reviewing these studies, it becomes apparent that all proposed warm-ups concluded with a speed phase, similar to WU1, which may result in a higher RPE compared to WU2 and WU3. Our results suggest that WU3, which concludes with the neuromuscular phase (NM), leads to improved performance in SP5 and SP20 due to the lower RPE reported by professional soccer players. In contrast, Chiu et al. (2022) compared a typical dynamic warm-up (i.e., running with various tempos and dynamic stretching) with the FIFA 11 + warm-up (i.e., running exercises with dynamic stretching; strength, plyometric and balance exercises; and high-intensity running exercises), and found no significant differences in RPE between the two protocols. Conversely, our results indicated that finishing with NM phase results in a lower RPE compared to finish with VL or BS phases. In this sense, a cognitive enough demand could have an influence on a player’s fatigue perception (Smith et al., 2019). In fact, several authors have shown that mental tasks are able to affect physical performance (Bray et al., 2012) and also a physiological response (Greig et al., 2007). Therefore, the warm-up tasks need to be cautiously selected to improve human performance ability perception.

This study presents some limitations that should be known by practitioners. The main limitation is that carrying on the study in different weeks during the in-season period the physical condition of players might vary between the three different measurements. Also, the collected data was from one team, so the sample is small. Another limitation is that other variables such as quality of sleep or muscle pain, which could influence the RPE, were not analyzed. Finally, the position of each player on the field was not considered. This could lead to variations in the warm-up objectives because the physical demands in each playing position are different (Modric et al., 2022).

Conclusions

In conclusion, it seems that a warm-up protocol following the order of WU3 (aerobic phase (AE; 10 min) + velocity phase (VL; 2 min), ball-specific phase (BS; 8 min) + neuromuscular phase (NM; 4 min)) would improve performance (i.e., ball velocity), and reduce the perceived exertion in professional soccer players. However, no differences between WU1 and WU2 have been found, so it depends on the personal preferences of practitioners and soccer players.

Practical Applications

These findings could be of great interest to the strength and conditioning coaches in professional soccer teams in order to improve physical performance and perceived exertion. Specifically, ending the pre-match warm-up with a neuromuscular phase seems to be more effective to increase ball speed, ball agility and CMJ, as well as to obtain lower RPE values. However, future studies should be directed towards analyzing individualized warm-ups based on different variables, such as playing positions.

Supplemental Information