Summary:
Aerobic capacity, as expressed through maximal oxygen uptake
(VO2max), is an important parameter of physical condition and a determinant of
performance in endurance sports, such as football. The purpose of the study was to
compare the anthropometric characteristics and aerobic capacity indices between two
professional soccer teams during the teams' preparation period.
Methodology: 49 soccer players from two teams (A Team (champion): 26 and B Team
(third runner-up): 23 soccer players) with an average weight of 77.1±6.9kg, height of
179.1±6.6cm and fat percentage participated in the research 9.1±2.6% who were
competing in the professional category Super League 2 of the Greek league. The
experimental design was carried out through laboratory ergometric measurements of
the following parameters: 1) the velocity of maximal oxygen uptake (vVO2max), 2)
the maximal heart rate (HRmax), 3) the velocity at the anaerobic threshold (vVT), 4)
the heart rate at the anaerobic threshold (HR at VT), 5) the percentage of the heart rate
of the anaerobic threshold corresponding to the maximum oxygen uptake (% HR at
VO2) and 6) the somatometric indicators of weight, height and percentage of body fat
(%). Descriptive statistics analysis and ANOVA analysis were performed to compare
between groups. The level of significance was set at p<0.05.
Results: The results showed that the champion group showed significantly better
statistical indicators compared to the third-placed group in the average maximum heart
rate (198.7±8.6>192.2±101KPS, p<0.05), speed at the anaerobic threshold
(14.1±1.0>13.0±0.8Km/h, p<0.001), the heart rate at the anaerobic threshold
(178.8±9.0>169.2±9.4KH, p=0.001 ), and in the mean % of heart rate at VO2max
(90.0±2.5%>169.2±9.4%, p=0.001). On the contrary, no statistically significant
differences were observed in the speed of maximum oxygen uptake and in the
somatometric characteristics of the players.
Conclusions: From the results we conclude that the differences in the indicators of
aerobic capacity are probably due to different training preparation and the different
performance profile of the football players of the two teams. The comparative
evaluation of aerobic fitness indicators between athletes or teams can help coaches to
identify weaknesses and differences in training preparation with the aim of better
planning training and improving the performance of players and the team.
Keywords:
VO2max, soccer, aerobic capacity, ergometric testing
