Does training affect match performance? A study using data mining and tracking devices

Abstract

FIFA has recently allowed the use of electronic performance and tracking systems (EPTS) in professional football competition, providing teams with novel and more accurate data. Physical performance has not yet taken much attention from the research community, due to the difficulty of accessing this information with the same devices during training and competition. This study provides a methodology based on machine learning and statistical methods to relate the physical performance variation of players during time-framed training sessions, and their performance in the following matches. The analysis is carried out over F.C. Barcelona B, season 2015-2016 data, and makes emphasis on exploiting the design characteristics of the structured training methodology implemented within the club. The use of summarized physical variation data has provided a remarkable relation between higher magnitudes of variation in 3-week time frames during training, and higher physical values in the following matches. With increased data availability this and new approaches could provide a new frontier in physical performance analysis. This is, up to our knowledge, the first study to relate training and matches performance through the same EPTS devices in professional football.