Abbott, W, Brownlee, T, Naughton, R, Clifford, T, Page, R and Harper, L (2020) Changes in perceptions of mental fatigue during a season in professional under-23 English Premier League soccer players. Research in Sports Medicine, 28 (4). pp. 529-539. ISSN 1057-8315

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Abstract

The present study assessed changes in academy soccer players’ perception of mental fatigue (MF) across a competitive season, investigating the relationship between MF and other subjective measures of wellness. Ten players completed a modified Brief Assessment of Mood (BAM+) questionnaire that included the question: ‘How mentally fatigued do you feel’? on match-day (MD) and one (MD+1), two (MD+2) and three (MD+3) days post-match (35 matches). Players reported their MF, along with other subjective measures (sleep, muscle soreness, fatigue and motivation). Results found MF was elevated on MD+1 (43±1 mm) compared to all other days (all P≤0.001). Players reported lower MF on MD+1 in the late-season phase (34±2 mm) compared to both early- (50±2 mm, P≤0.001) and mid-season (46±2 mm, P≤0.001). This coincided with an 80%-win rate in the late-season phase versus the early- (33%) and mid-season (50%). There were very strong repeated-measures correlations between changes in MF and sleep (r=-0.77), muscle soreness (r=0.94), fatigue (r=0.92) and motivation (r =-0.89; all P≤0.0005). In conclusion, MF was closely aligned to match success and other wellness variables. This data suggests a potential lack of sensitivity for identifying MF using a subjective questionnaire. Therefore, researchers and practitioners could work together to identify other ways of practically assessing MF.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	This is an Accepted Manuscript of an article published by Taylor & Francis in Research in Sports Medicine on 30/6/2020, available online: http://www.tandfonline.com/10.1080/15438627.2020.1784176
Uncontrolled Keywords:	0913 Mechanical Engineering, 1106 Human Movement and Sports Sciences
Subjects:	R Medicine > RC Internal medicine > RC1200 Sports Medicine G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GV Recreation Leisure > GV561 Sports
Divisions:	Sport & Exercise Sciences
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis (Routledge)
Date Deposited:	17 Jun 2020 12:54
Last Modified:	04 Sep 2021 07:10
DOI or ID number:	10.1080/15438627.2020.1784176
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/13104

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