The influence of maturation, fitness, and hormonal indices on minutes played in elite youth soccer players: a cross-sectional study

Ebrahim Eskandarifard; Hadi Nobari; Filipe Manuel Clemente; Rui Silva; Cain C T Clark; Hugo Sarmento; António José Figueiredo

doi:10.1186/s13102-022-00480-8

The influence of maturation, fitness, and hormonal indices on minutes played in elite youth soccer players: a cross-sectional study

BMC Sports Sci Med Rehabil. 2022 May 17;14(1):89. doi: 10.1186/s13102-022-00480-8.

Authors

Ebrahim Eskandarifard^{1

2}, Hadi Nobari^{3

4

5

6}, Filipe Manuel Clemente^{7

8}, Rui Silva⁷, Cain C T Clark⁹, Hugo Sarmento², António José Figueiredo²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, 81746-7344, Iran.
² Research Unit for Sport and Physical Activity, Faculty of Sport Sciences and Physical Education, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
³ Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Sport Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, 81746-7344, Iran. hadi.nobari1@gmail.com.
⁴ Department of Motor Performance, Faculty of Physical Education and Mountain Sports, Transilvania University of Braşov, 500068, Braşov, Romania. hadi.nobari1@gmail.com.
⁵ Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil, 56199-11367, Iran. hadi.nobari1@gmail.com.
⁶ Sports Scientist, Sepahan Football Club, Isfahan, 81887-78473, Iran. hadi.nobari1@gmail.com.
⁷ Escola Superior Desporto e Lazer, Instituto Politécnico de Viana do Castelo, Rua Escola Industrial e Comercial de Nun'Álvares, 4900-347, Viana do Castelo, Portugal.
⁸ Delegação da Covilhã, Instituto de Telecomunicações, 1049-001, Lisbon, Portugal.
⁹ Centre for Intelligent Healthcare, Coventry University, Coventry, CV1 5FB, UK.

Abstract

Background: The main purpose of this study was to investigate the relationships between minutes played (MP) with maturity status, fitness, and hormonal levels, and to quantify their influence on minutes played.

Methods: Twenty-four elite youth soccer players under-16 years participated in this study, over a full-season period. Anthropometric measures, maturity status, hormonal and physical fitness levels were collected. Participants were monitored during the season. After the end-season, players were assessed in 6 different tests over a four-day period.

Results: The maximum oxygen consumption (V̇O_2max) was strongly correlated with MP (r = 0.75), maturity offset (r = 0.52), and countermovement jump (r = 0.53). Multiple linear regression explained 76% of MP (F (8, 15) = 6.05, p = 0.001), with an R2 of 0.76. Moreover, Growth hormone (GH) and V̇O_2max. were the most influential factors in MP (F (2, 21) = 17.92, p ≤ 0.001), with an R2 of 0.63.

Conclusion: High levels of GH and V̇O_2max have a preponderant role in MP by elite youth soccer players, it appears to be more pragmatic to consider other contextual dimensions, as they can impact selection for competition and minutes of participation in a match.

Keywords: Football; Maturation; Performance; Playing time; Talent development; V̇O2max; Young.