SLIDE 1 Geir Jordet
Norwegian School of Sport Sciences Norwegian Centre of Football Excellence
The hidden foundation of field vision in English Premier League (EPL) soccer players
Johan Heijmerikx
University of Groningen
Jonathan Bloomfield
Support2Perform
SLIDE 2 2006 World Cup; Germany vs: 1: Costa Rica; 2: Poland, 3:
Ecuador; 4: Sweden; 5: Argentina; 6: Italy; 7: Portugal (8: final)
Wilbert-Lampen et
SLIDE 3
Italy vs. Germany, World Cup Semifinal 2006
SLIDE 4
”There are some special players who always find openings.” “Those who see will get you wins. But not many players are able to see like this.” (Arsenal Coach Arsene Wenger, Oct 7, 2010)
SLIDE 5 Previous research
- All studies on visual search
in team sports are carried out in restricted lab settings: – Film stimuli – Eye movements only – Non-relevant movements (joystick, left or right step)
ecologically valid paradigms and studies of real-world situations.
Roca et al. (2011)
SLIDE 6
Evolution of the visual system
SLIDE 7
Frontally positioned eyes
SLIDE 8 A visual exploration is: “A body and/or head movement in which the player’s face is actively and temporarily directed away from the ball, with the intention of looking for information that is relevant to perform a subsequent action with the ball.”
SLIDE 9
Purpose
Learn about the ways expert professional soccer players use visual exploratory behaviors in real-world games and Examine the link between these behaviors and performance.
SLIDE 10
Method
Sky Sport’s split screen PlayerCam broadcasts: 64 EPL games, 118 players, 1,279 relevant situations
SLIDE 11 0,1 0,2 0,3 0,4 0,5
0.27 0.33 81%
Not Awarded players Awarded players
Individual Awards Exploratory Behavior Frequency (explorations/second)
Mann Whitney U = 155728.00 p < .001
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Frank Lampard #1 Exploratory frequency: 0.62 explorations/second Steven Gerrard #2 Exploratory frequency: 0.61 explorations/second
SLIDE 13 20 40 60 80 100
68% 64% 81%
High frequency Medium frequency Low frequency
Exploratory Behavior Frequency Passes Completed
OR=1.18 p=.316 OR=2.46 p<.001 OR=1 Ref.
N = 118 players Midfielders and Forwards
SLIDE 14
SLIDE 15 20 40 60 80 100
56% 41% 75%
High frequency Medium frequency Low frequency
Exploratory Behavior Frequency Forward Passes Completed
OR=1.84 p=.114 OR=4.38 p<.001 OR=1 Ref.
N = 55 players Midfielders only
SLIDE 16
SLIDE 17 20 40 60 80 100
55% 44% 77%
High frequency Medium frequency Low frequency
Exploratory Behavior Frequency Forward Passes Completed on Opponents’ Half
OR=1.50 p=.437 OR=4.25 p=.024 OR=1 Ref.
N = 55 players Midfielders only
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SLIDE 20 Conclusions
- For EPL-players, there is a close relationship between exploratory
behaviors and Performance, across roles and locations in the field.
- When players’ eyes are not naturally exposed to relevant info,
exploratory behaviors provide a necessary foundation for vision.
- Not a sufficient explanation for vision, as expert players
probably also process information more effectively, e.g.:
– Higher Signal sensitivity – Better Pattern recognition
- However, with increased exploratory behaviors the eyes will be
exposed to more information, which will improve ability to effectively process this information.
SLIDE 21
SLIDE 22
To what extent can exploratory behavior be developed/trained?
Everyday behavior Athletes’ deliberate practice Evolution
SLIDE 23
Spain vs. Netherlands, World Cup Final 2010
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geir.jordet@gmail.com
(+47) 90 78 02 50
Thank you for your attention
