Maturity and Talent Identification in Youth Football:Methods,Effects,and Prospects
Talent identification of youth football players is often based on the early athletic ac-complishments,and the significant disparities in maturity among players of the same chronolog-ical age can exist.Utilizing maturity as the grouping criterion is beneficial in ensuring the scien-tific and precise selection practices.Through a systematic review of domestic and international literature on maturity spanning the past two decades,assessment methods and their effects on the football talent identification are reviewed.The study found that:1)Extensive researches by international scholars on maturity and its effects on identifying youth football talent,encompass-ing anthropometric and body composition parameters,physical fitness,technical skills,tactics,and mental abilities;2)early-maturing athletes have temporary advantages in height,weight,maximal strength,explosive power,speed,and anaerobic endurance,while punctual and late-maturing athletes may catch up or even surpass them in the later stage;3)coordination,technical,and tactical ability are less influenced by maturity,and it is suggested to increase their criteria weights in selection processes;4)due to the inconsistency of test methods used in different studies and the wide variation in sample characteristics,there is no consensus among existing studies on the effects of maturity on agility,aerobic endurance,and mental capabilities.Coaches should grasp the pivotal role of maturity in youth football talent identification,emphasize individual differ-ences to ensure accurate selection,so as to guide the scientific development of young footballers.
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