The Relationship Between Pre-Season Functional Screening Test Performance and Coaches' Perception of Soccer Performance in Adult Male Players

Abstract

Coaches typically play a central role in team performance and player selection, but their assessments can also be valuable for the medical team in injury prevention and recovery. This research aimed to evaluate whether soccer coaches' evaluations of their players' physical abilities align with performance testing during pre-season. The players were rated subjectively by two coaches independently, focusing on various aspects such as technical, tactical, physical, and psychological skills. Ratings were given on a scale of 0 to 100, based on the coaches' perceptions of top players in those positions globally. The mean score of the coaches' ratings was used for each player. The study used the Intra-class Correlation Coefficient (ICC) to measure the reliability of inter-coach ratings, while players' scores on common functional tests were assessed independently by the medical staff. Decision tree analysis was conducted to determine the association between coaches' ratings and functional testing scores, as well as to identify cut-off values for differentiating higher and lower coach ratings. Sixty-three male professional soccer players from the Saudi Professional League participated voluntarily. The ICC values ranged from 0.73 to 0.79, indicating good to excellent agreement between coaches. The analysis showed that functional performance scores and coach ratings agreed in 86% of cases, with 88% precision and 91% recall. The algorithm correctly identified 88.4% of players rated high performers by coaches and 80% of lower-rated players. Cut-off scores were determined based on specific functional test results. For instance, players scoring above certain thresholds on tests like the Y-balance test and triple medial hop were more likely to receive higher coach ratings. The study revealed a solid alignment between coaches' subjective evaluations of physical abilities and objectively measured functional performance tests. These results hold the potential for aiding in player selection, establishing preparation standards, and facilitating players' return to play after injury.