This is how footballers will improve their play

A recent research has derived that individual perspective and behavioral peculiarities of the footballers besides physical training need to be considered to improve their level of play.

The research, led by the Lomonosov Moscow State University psychologists, described the results of the observations on how the players' ability to concentrate on the game changes throughout a season.

The researches focused on such parameters as attention, short-term memory and reaction time. Basing on data, the psychologists, doctors and trainers would be able to structure the training process with maximum efficiency.

The researchers of many countries gathered in the French town of Valenciennes this month to share the experience of scientific observations in a football sphere.

Participation in such events is particularly important for Russia as the country's national team will soon have a chance to compete for the title of European football champions and to play on their home field at the 2018 European championship.

Two football teams were invited to participate in the experiments, one consisting of professional players and the other of semi-professionals. Focusing particularly on the peculiarities of attention, memory and reaction, the scientists also never missed collecting data on the players' physical condition.

Psychologists tracked the changes in footballers' conditions while testing their aerobic and anaerobic capacities. Researchers assumed that physical form of the players and their readiness to distribute attention, reaction and coordination may correlate.

To test the attention distribution abilities, scientists suggested the 'red-and-black charts' challenge.

The idea is on a sheet of paper the red numbers from 1 to 15 and black numbers from 1 to 24 are randomly spread. Psychologists measured the time a player spent on finding first all black numbers in ascending order and then all red numbers in descending order.

Having already reached significant results, the MSU psychologists are not going to stop their survey. Scientists are going to conduct tests on various periods of the game season and also describe basic characteristics of the players, considering their age and game role.

This study has been published in Proceedings of the International Congress of Sciences and Football.