Journal of Physical Education and Sport, cilt.24, sa.4, ss.864-871, 2024 (Scopus)
Objective of the Study: Due to the different tasks of football players playing in different positions during the competition, their workload and energy needs also change and accordingly the necessity of special training planning arises. In this context, the aim of this study is to examine the correlation between sprint, counter movement jump, agility and endurance parameters of elite football players according to their playing positions. Method: The research model was determined as a correlational survey model from survey models. A total of 65 volunteer male footballers competing at U14 elite level in Turkish leagues participated in the study. The body weight (kg) values of the participants were measured using an electronic weighing machine (Tanita TBF 401 A, Japan) with an accuracy of ± 100 g, and their height (cm) was measured using a digital height measuring device with an accuracy of 0.01 cm. The counter movement jump parameter of the footballers was measured by Smartjump Vertical Jump Testing, their agility parameter was measured by Pro-Agility test protocol, their sprint parameter was measured by Smart Speed and Fusion Sport photocell, and their endurance parameter was measured by Yo-Yo IR1 tests. SPSS 24 software was used to analyze the data. The Pearson’s Correlation Analysis method was applied to determine the correlation between the performance parameters of the football players in terms of the positions. Findings: The findings of the study revealed that there was a high positive correlation (r=.784, p=0.037) between the agility parameter and 0-30 m sprint parameter and a high positive correlation (r=.782, p=0.038) between the 20-30 m sprint and 0-30 m sprint parameters of the goalkeepers. While a weak negative correlation (r=-.459, p=0.032) was found between the counter movement jump parameter and sprint parameter in defensive players, a moderate negative correlation was found (r=-.531, p=0.023) between these parameters in midfield players, and a moderate negative correlation was found (r=-.521, p=0.027) between these parameters in forward players. A positive moderate correlation was found between agility and 10-20 m (r=.530, p=0.024) and 0-30 m sprint parameters (r=.510, p=0.030), while a negative moderate correlation was found between 0-10 m sprint and 10-20 m sprint parameters (r=-.523, p=0.026). Moreover, there was a moderate positive correlation between 10-20 m sprint and 0-30 m sprint parameters (r=.533, p=0.023) and between 20-30 m sprint and 0-30 m sprint parameters (r=.580, p=0.012). Conclusion: Considering the positions and performance outputs of the football players in the field, it can be asserted that the intensity of the actions performed by the football players in the competition was mainly anaerobic, and success was based on especially the motoric characteristics in which the phosphagen system was active.