Psychological profile of young footballers depending on playing role

Abstract

Problem statement. Empirical data confirm that psychological factors are an integral part of the footballer player’s talent model. There is insufficient scientific development of approaches to the inclusion of psychological characteristics in the selection process of young football players. The purpose of the study is to identify the psychological profile of young football players depending on their playing role. Material and Methods: The study involved 76 athletes aged 13 to 15 years old at the stage of preliminary basic training. A number of standardized psychodiagnostic methods were applied. Results: The video analysis of the competitive activity of young football players allowed systematizing and performing a qualitative analysis of the player technical and tactical actions, determining their effectiveness by game role and the effectiveness of team interaction. Comparison of psychological indicators (cognitive anxiety, somatic anxiety and self-confidence) between players of the first and second teams within each playing role allowed to determine the statistically significant differences in the athlete’s psychological profile depending on the participation in the main or reserve team. The use of psychological methods in the structure of the study made it possible to identify the relationship between technical and tactical game efficiency and psychological characteristics of young football players depending on their playing role. Clustering analysis selected three types of player game profiles, among which potential leaders were identified by the set of technical-tactical and psychological characteristics. The constructed clusters allow the coaching staff to understand the specifics of the game profiles of each football player, adapt training loads, and also consider psychological and motivational features when making a final decision on selection. After the formation of individual player profiles and their clustering, a final multi-attribute assessment of candidates for the team was carried out using a multi-criteria decision making method VIKOR. Conclusion: Individual selection of players for the main team should consider not only the level of skill, but also psychological variables: cognitive anxiety (16–23 scores), somatic anxiety (15–18 scores), self-confidence (>26 scores), predominance of task orientation, high level of intrinsic motivation (≥5.5 scores).