Throughout this report I critically analyse a plethora of training methods in football and examine why endurance training is a vital component on any training plan for any football player. Stamina is a vital facet of any footballer’s abilities as they have to be able to competently perform for 90 minutes. Riley (1996) observes that in conventional English soccer, the distance covered per game varies according to the position a player is in. This necessitates footballers requiring specific physiology needs to suit their position.This is exemplified by a study conducted by Riley and Thomas (1976, figure 13.1, p. 373) which illustrated the distance covered by outfield players per game categorised by their position. They found that midfielders run 10,000 metres a game on average, strikers cover 8,500 metres, fullbacks 8,400 metres and defenders covered approximately 8,200 metres per game. They concluded that a player in any position needs to possess high levels of V02 max in order to perform at the optimum level in training and matches.

Riley (1996) also established that there is a high correlation between aerobic power (VO2 max) and distance covered per game which underpins the philosophy of adopting training regimes that facilitate the development of the respiratory system in transporting oxygen (Thomas and Riley, 1976, p. 374). This seems to infer that endurance training is conducive to increasing the distance a footballer is able to cover per game, which may be a considerable amount.

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Van Gool, Van Gerven and Boutmans (1995, as cited in Riley, 1997) undertook a study on VO2 max and footballers and ascertained that players normally exercised at a rate of approximately 75% of their VO2 max. This coincides with marathon runners who also ran at about 75% of their VO2 max capacity (Riley, 1997). This gives an indication of the levels of VO2 max needed for an athlete to sustain their performance levels. Interestingly, midfield players use the same rate of VO2 max as long distance runners when they are playing football, which suggests that they are a vital component of a football team.

Further eminent investigations demonstrated that football players who completed 8 to 12 weeks of aerobic high-intensity running training (>85% HR max) experienced an increase in their VO2 max between 5% to 11%, with an enhanced running economy of 3% to 7% (Iaia, Rampinini and Bangsbo, 2009).

Recent research conjectures that success in youth soccer may be associated with good aerobic endurance performance (Vaeyens et al., 2006). Subsequently, it may be pertinent to assess the aerobic endurance performance of youth soccer players continuously as this has applications in monitoring their fitness and the effectiveness of physical conditioning programmes, and facilitates long term planning of such programmes.

A steady state training program may increase athlete’s aerobic endurance. Denadai et al. (2005, p. 364) construe maximal lactate steady state as “the highest exercise intensity at which there is a balance between the rate of lactate appearance in the blood and its rate of removal.” When applying this to the aerobic endurance of soccer players, a modality of training which could be used is running at a consistent pace on a treadmill, whilst continuously increasing the speed in steady increments.

Denadai et al. (2005) argue that there are disadvantages with using this approach as it constitutes the replication of 4-6 series of constant-intensity exercise bouts.
Denadai et al. (2005) also tried to ascertain if there is a relationship between steady state and critical velocity, which is defined as the highest exercise intensity that can be maintained during a prolonged period of exercise without exhaustion. Denadai et al.’s (2005) study constituted of twelve male professional elite soccer players who volunteered to take part of their own volition. All the players involved had been competing at a national level at the time of the study. They were in the middle of their season and had training sessions at least 4 days a week as well as a competitive match every weekend. The subjects completed a total of 8 sessions: an initial incremental treadmill test to determine the onset of blood lactate accumulation and 7 subsequent sessions to determine their maximal lactate steady state and critical velocity. The latter sessions were performed in a random order and were completed on separate days within a 2-week period (Denadai et al., 2005, p. 366). The researchers concluded that there was no significant difference between onset of blood lactate accumulation and maximal lactate steady state or onset of bloo