Level of tactical intelligence between athletes of the u-14 and u-16 categories of a football club

Abstract

This research aims to analyze the tactical intelligence (IT) of athletes under 14 and sub 16 of the basic category of a football club. At first, a bibliographic research was carried out from articles published in two specific journals in the area of football, "Revista Brasileira de Futebol" and "Revista Brasileira de Futebol e Futsal", in order to investigate how the tactical issue in football is discussed in the academic area. From the descriptors: "tactical" and "tactical", used in the search tool of these journals, 30 scientific articles related to tactics in football between 2008 and 2015 were found. Among them, tactical analysis, IT and the valorization of technical-tactical training were the aspects most addressed by the authors. Nevertheless, the tactic as an object of study in the academic field, in the selected sources, presents an incipient condition when compared with other components of soccer structures, such as technique, physical preparation and sports initiation. From this gap in Brazilian scientific production, the FUT-SAT test was applied to the under-16 and under-14 players. The results indicated a discrepancy between the Offensive and Defensive Tactical Performance Indexes (IPT). In both categories, offensive actions were more effective than defensive actions. In relation to the comparison between the groups of players, in the Offensive IPT there was similarity between the categories, but with a slight advantage of the under-14. On the defensive issue the numbers also pointed to a better performance of the younger ones. From the analysis, it is necessary to apply tactical training in the most collective sense, working principles such as Offensive Unit, Concentration and Defensive Unit, fundamental for the balance and performance of a team.