PLAYERS & PERFORMANCE

At CCC, our observations have shown that the psychological aspect of player development is most important. We firmly believe that if the player is happy and content, this will lead to improved performance.

 

Many coaches CCC have spoken to indicate performance is 90% psychological and only 10% physical, despite the physical revolution that has been seen over the past 10-15 years with a plethora of statistics and tracking equipment (such as GPS) being made available. CCC believes that the next frontier for football to conquer is the psychological aspect. 

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CCC therefore prioritises psychological support of our players, aiming for an Optimal State of Flow where:

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1. There is a balanced context of challenge and skills

2. The player has a clear idea what to do

3. The player receives specific positive feedback to know they are doing well

4. The player develops specific concentration in the task at hand

5. The player has a sense of control

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An autotelic experience is the result; the player experiences a loss of self consciousness and transformation of time, playing the game for enjoyment and not for external outcomes, which of course will follow as a derivative of this. 

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Furthermore, our research distinguishes between physical and mental fatigue, with coaches emphasising that mental fatigue is the far greater concern. At CCC we therefore monitor mental fatigue through our coaching conversations.

 

But what is mental fatigue in football and why is it important? It represents a psychobiological state caused by prolonged periods of demanding mental activity. Prevention is more important than correction so CCC works with our athletes through dialogue and close monitoring of player behaviour to identify indicators of mental fatigue before it happens. 

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Potential reasons/causes of mental fatigue:

- hard experiences/ competition demands

- excessive professionalisation

- other activities (studies)

- over analysis

- environment, club context, training climate

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How mental fatigue can manifest:

- subjectively (increased feelings of tiredness or decreased motivation)

- behaviourally (impairments in accuracy or reaction time)

- physiologically (alterations in brain activity)

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Consequences of mental fatigue may include:

- bad performance

- decrease in motivation

- lack of attention and concentration 

- poor decision-making

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Solutions to prevent mental fatigue before it happens:

- plan training loads properly

- mental recuperation

- avoid demanding activities prior to competition

- resolving individual differences

- ergogenic aids and recovery processes

- support (from agents, teammates, coaches, family etc)

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CCC therefore employs a range of tools to support our players psychologically:

• We determine a player's personality during the recruitment process using a seven-point questionnaire system helping us to personalise our approach to managing each player:

  • Cognitive Style Index

  • Myers-Briggs Personality

  • Belbin Team Roles

  • Kolb’s learning Styles

  • SMS motivation test

  • STAI / CSAI to determine stress levels of our athletes

  • HRV Analysis to identify signs of burnout

• CCC then utilises The Curve to track progress of psychological development points throughout the course of CCC’s relationship with the player

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This only scratches the surface of the topics which CCC can support players on from a psychological perspective. We help players develop their resilience, attention and much more. 

Footballing models such as Tactical Periodisation propose that there are Tactical, Technical, Physical and Psychological aspects to player development. Although theoretically equal in importance as a player must develop in all areas together, Tamarit (2008) argues that one is more important than the others: ‘The Tactical Supradimension’. This is because the tactics a football team uitlises influences the technical, physical and psychological demands which must be developed during the training process. 

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​The football coach of team is responsible for this, defining the playing model of the team in each moment of the game, including defining the behaviours (principles and sub-principles) required to achieve this.

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At CCC, we can support you in understanding the role required of you in each moment of the game, using data and video analysis to challenge your decision-making and performance. 

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Decision-making in football rarely depends on reasoning. Thinking requires the frontal lobe of the brain and is relatively slow. Instead, the best football players rely on emotions and feelings through the limbic system to make quicker decisions. Coaches must use somatic markets to connect mental images to emotions and feelings; it is important to associate positive emotions with desirable behaviours connected to the playing model and negative emotions with undesirable behaviours.

 

Learning therefore comes from active and intentional (specific) systemic repetition and is the result of a well-designed training process.​ At CCC we provide specific feedback to support you in learning your tactical role.

Generally, there are core techniques football players must master which include passing, control, dribbling, running with the ball, turning, heading, shooting, defending and passing. 

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Elite players are often arriving at academies from the ages of 12-13. So what happens in this important principal training that does not happen at high level clubs? The answer is: street football. It is disappearing and academies must analyse its characteristics and incorporate these within the academy process to promote tactical intelligence, adaptability and creativity within the playing model.

 

Poor coaching of technique involves out of context principles and constant repetition without meaning or transference, often leading to player boredom. In reality, technical skills are performed in unpredictable environments, with variables such as time and space influencing their implementation.

 

Tactical and technical aspects must therefore be trained together. Training must be specific to the playing model where technique adjusts to realistic scenarios involving uncertainty, randomness, variability and the potential for players to explore. This results in adaptability of technique as seen in street football otherwise a player ends up with mechanised movements with low adaptability. 

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At CCC we ensure we place you in environments which support your technical development and do not stifle your creativity. 

1. Biological function and physical fitness

 

The number of injuries in football are growing year on year, mainly due to muscle fibres breaking during accelerations and decelerations. This is partly due to game developments like increased fixtures and increases in the number of high intensity sprints per game and partly due to commercial areas making decisions which negatively impact the high performance area.

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Strength training is therefore vitally important to strengthen muscles so that they are ready for the demands of modern football. Coaches say they coach strength/physical training but:

- is this specific to football?

- is this specific to the player's position? 

- is workload appropriate?

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At CCC we ask these questions and much more. From a physical perspective we understand the importance of monitoring:

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• Strength (maximal strength dynamic and static, strength speed and endurance)

• Speed (reaction speed, acceleration, deceleration and max velocity)

• Resistance (thresholds, VT, VO2max, lactate, VAM)

• Flexibility

• Coordination

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CCC uses several tools, such as Rate of Perceived Exertion (RPE), to monitor our players' physical workloads and understand where there may be indicators of physical fatigue and potential injury. 

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2. Biochemicals

Monitoring biochemicals provides valuable insights into both the chronic and acute loads of our players. By analysing key markers, we can identify signs of fatigue, stress or overtraining which impact performance:

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1. Hydration (using the Armstrong scale)

2. Cortisol (an objective measure of physiological stress)

3. Lactate (reflecting metabolic workload and recovery status)

4. Glucose (to assess energy availability)

5. Creatine Phosphokinase (CPK - a marker of muscle damage)

6. C-Reactive Protein (CRIP - an indicator of inflammation)

7. Blood Biochemistry (hematocrit, hemoglobin and mean corpuscular value)

 

3. Nutritional

 

A good diet will never make a team win but a bad diet ensures a bad sports performance. CCC therefore supports its athletes in devising an appropriate meal plan. We discuss topics with our players such as: 

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• what do you eat?

• when do you eat?

• how much do you eat?

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These discussions provide CCC with information to better advise and educate our players on how to feed themselves to get a better performance. It is essential players consume the right amounts of protein, carbohydrates and fats at the right times to complement their physical training and develop their bodies for the demands of the game.

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