ANALYSIS OF NETWORK PROPERTIES AND TACTICAL BEHAVIOR OF U-17 SOCCER ATHLETES WITH DIFFERENT TACTICAL SKILLS

ABSTRACT This study aimed compare individual tactical behavior and network properties of players with higher and lower tactical skills during soccer small-sided games. The sample was composed of 18 U-17 elite soccer players (16.2 years old) from the same national level team. Players were divided into group 1 and group 2, with higher and lower tactical skill, respectively, measured by the FUT-SAT. After this, they played 12 small-sided games in a 36x27m field with all rules of the formal game. Players’ tactical behavior was assessed through the incidence of fundamental tactical principles during the SSG. Total links, density and clustering coefficient were defined as the general network metrics. Data were analyzed through independent t-test and Mann-Whitney test. Results showed that group 1 presented higher values of total links (p=0.007) and density (p=0.007). Group 1 also presented a higher incidence of defensive unity (p=0.001), while group 2 realized more actions of defensive balance (p=0.008) and recovery balance (p=0.038). We conclude that tactical skills are able to constraint individual team behavior in small-sided games.