Tired footballers?

Weegie Addick

There's a lot of talk about the toll of two matches a week. I'm sorry, but I don't really get it. Just look at tennis players who might have to play four or five hours one day, then four or five again the next day - in an individual sport that is as mentally demanding as it is physically demanding. And their season runs from January to November. Footballers - even third division ones - are professional athletes, and should be able to manage to play 95 minutes on a Saturday and Tuesday for a month without looking "leggy" or knackered. Am I missing something?

LenGlover

I agree with you re the physical side certainly..

The only difference I can see mentally is that tennis players don't receive the crowd abuse and hostility that footballers do as a general rule. Football is a game of confidence and if, for whatever reason, players feel unappreciated then that confidence can be affected. Hamer being exhibit A p'raps (as Curbs would say).

Off_it

Are we really comparing footballers to tennis players? Why?

Can't remember the last time I saw a tennis player get a whack on the ankle playing a baseline rally!

Stig

I can't believe that boxers get tired so quickly . They train for months on end for fights that could be over in a few minutes. They should be more like chess players and have matches lasting up to 20 hours.

tangoflash

Agree with off_it. There's not the physical element to tennis. Football is a contact sport and all those kicks, barges etc all take their toll on the body. When your body has an injury it compensates by spreading the load to other areas of the body, causing extra pressure on those parts, thus making the body work harder and causing fatigue.

Baldybonce

There's a lot of talk about the toll of two matches a week. I'm sorry, but I don't really get it. Just look at tennis players who might have to play four or five hours one day, then four or five again the next day - in an individual sport that is as mentally demanding as it is physically demanding. And their season runs from January to November. Footballers - even third division ones - are professional athletes, and should be able to manage to play 95 minutes on a Saturday and Tuesday for a month without looking "leggy" or knackered. Am I missing something?

as most of them are ordinary blokes who happen to be good at football it must be quite exhausting to fit in a couple of nights clubbing, meetings with agents, bank managers, discuss image rights and then have to try and spend all that money.

tongue firmly in cheek.

Granpa

Whatever the rights or wrongs, we certainly are looking stale at the moment. The question is why did we go to the trouble of building a good squad if we aren't going to use it ?

Henry Irving

Notts Co rested half their team on Tuesday night. We didn't.

Was that the only reason we lost so badly? IMHO no but it may have been a factor

Algarveaddick

Plenty of people do physical jobs that are also mentally tough, most of them work a full 40 hours a week, 48 weeks of the year. Tired footballers? Do me a favour.

Addick Addict

Look at how certain of the "main" players are performing in the PL (e.g. Bale & VDV at Spurs and Silva & Agueiro at City) and you will see just why those clubs aren't doing so well. It's not necessarily the number of games played but having to play those games at a high tempo carrying knocks and niggles.

WSA

They were ok in the second half weren't they? Perhaps they should set the alarm earlier.

allez les addicks

Plenty of people do physical jobs that are also mentally tough, most of them work a full 40 hours a week, 48 weeks of the year. Tiered footballers? Do me a favour.

Do all those people perform at their absolute peak, 100% of the time though, as we expect from footballers?

I certainly don't so congratulations if you do!

thenewbie

There is always the mental aspect of exhaustion though. Football players know that there are often thousands of people watching and expecting them to perform to the very best of their abilities every single time, no excuses, no off days, nothing but the very very best, for forty weeks every single year. To use your example, most tennis players know that if they do have a bad day/game then another chance to win will be along soon enough. Football players have the league, the cups, and thats it. You have to put everything on much smaller odds of success. That must be an intimidating thought.

daveaddick

Physical exhaustion is one thing and you can train harder to improve that but it's mental exhaustion that is harder to overcome, it affects your concentration and your ability to make decisions and it quickly it leads to tentativeness. I think that is what we saw Saturday and I have to agree having put a squad together why doesn't CP rotate it a bit, not wholesale changes but maybe one or two in the key positions, Cort in centre defence is a good example, hopefully he will have figured it out by Saturday a nice away win will put us back on track.

Oggy Red

The team have looked jaded recently ......but 1 or 2 changes bringing in a player or too raring to go can change the collective mental energy.

And the fact that there is no midweek match at last will give a chance for niggles to heal and an edge to our energy, which has been lacking.

Algarveaddick

Plenty of people do physical jobs that are also mentally tough, most of them work a full 40 hours a week, 48 weeks of the year. Tiered footballers? Do me a favour.

Do all those people perform at their absolute peak, 100% of the time though, as we expect from footballers?

I certainly don't so congratulations if you do!

Yes I think some do, firemen and miners spring to mind. If they cock up it can mean an appointment with the grim reaper, not just a few Herbert's calling them a useless so and so...

And I bet most manage to be at 100% for three hours during their working week, which is all we ask of footballers.

harveys_gardener

Their lactose levels will be monitored daily to pinpoint any signs of tiredness. As others have said it's the mental tiredness that is harder to gauge. It has been noticeable that the defence bring the ball out less than earlier in the season, and we have been hitting Yann long rather than pass it out. Some of this is compounded by the fact that other sides are packing the midfield against us. Another factor is likely to be aprehension over Hamer's ankle, causing uncertainty in defence.

Addicted

Just a heads up, they dont just work for 3 hours a week... training etc wont exactly be a walk in the park, both mentally and physically.

Algarveaddick

Just a heads up, they dont just work for 3 hours a week... training etc wont exactly be a walk in the park, both mentally and physically.

Sorry mate, not having it. They have a day off after the game, so that's about twelve to eighteen hours training in a two match week. And I don't see how training can be mentally demanding. Someone tells you to jump, you jump, its not exactly coming up with a solution to the national debt.

East Kent Addick

After the Bournemouth game I half expected Jackson and BWP to be rested midweek as they both looked very tired. Whilst Jackson has continued to look knackered in the 2 subsequent games - BWP looked on fire on Saturday - not sure whether Jackson needs a rest or is simply still carrying an injury - Powell's reluctance to rest him probably due to the fact that we have no natural cover on the left which worries me as apart from his dead ball skills he is contributing very little in recent games and that is probably having a knock-on effect on Wiggins who was far from his best on Saturday

Deadred

After the Bournemouth game I half expected Jackson and BWP to be rested midweek as they both looked very tired. Whilst Jackson has continued to look knackered in the 2 subsequent games - BWP looked on fire on Saturday - not sure whether Jackson needs a rest or is simply still carrying an injury - Powell's reluctance to rest him probably due to the fact that we have no natural cover on the left which worries me as apart from his dead ball skills he is contributing very little in recent games and that is probably having a knock-on effect on Wiggins who was far from his best on Saturday

Mentioned it on another thread, Hollands is naturally left footed stick him out there and bring in Russel or Hughes or Pritchard.

ShootersHillGuru

I think it's interesting when you hear very well respected managers such as Ferguson or Redknapp saying that fixture congestion is a real problem for their players. These are coaches who have forgotten more things about the beautiful game than I will ever know. If they say that tiredness can be a problem then that's good enough for me.

East Kent Addick

After the Bournemouth game I half expected Jackson and BWP to be rested midweek as they both looked very tired. Whilst Jackson has continued to look knackered in the 2 subsequent games - BWP looked on fire on Saturday - not sure whether Jackson needs a rest or is simply still carrying an injury - Powell's reluctance to rest him probably due to the fact that we have no natural cover on the left which worries me as apart from his dead ball skills he is contributing very little in recent games and that is probably having a knock-on effect on Wiggins who was far from his best on Saturday

Mentioned it on another thread, Hollands is naturally left footed stick him out there and bring in Russel or Hughes or Pritchard.

Agreed that's the best option although with Stephens not yet hitting form that could weaken the central midfield

killerandflash

Football is played on a much larger surface than tennis, I don't know how much running a tennis player would do in a 4 hour game, in comparison to a box to box footballer in 90 minutes. A boggy pitch might take out more on the body as well, and yes the physical contact drains energy.

Sports people being tired doesn't mean they can't so the job, but it does mean they won't be at their best. Comparing with people doing 'proper jobs' old fashioned mining is of course much harder, where firemen spend much of their time waiting around, so normally get time to recharge the batteries between jobs.

Oggy Red

I think it's interesting when you hear very well respected managers such as Ferguson or Redknapp saying that fixture congestion is a real problem for their players. These are coaches who have forgotten more things about the beautiful game than I will ever know. If they say that tiredness can be a problem then that's good enough for me.

Exactly. Tiredness doesn't mean you can't run for 90 minutes, but it does mean you can lose sharp reactions and an edge to your game.

Algarveaddick

I think it's interesting when you hear very well respected managers such as Ferguson or Redknapp saying that fixture congestion is a real problem for their players. These are coaches who have forgotten more things about the beautiful game than I will ever know. If they say that tiredness can be a problem then that's good enough for me.

Ah, managers. Yes, of course they would never, ever come up with excuses other than "my team was poor today." That Fergie is renown for his honesty after defeat...

Bryan_Kynsie

Pro footballers are doing something for a living that they enjoy. Anyone who has trained and got fit knows that its not the next day as much as the day after that there is stiffness, even if you warm down properly. But playing twice in a week should not "tire" a professional unless (like Easter) it is two games within 48 hours. A slightly jaded performance is to be expected on Easter Monday and thats why we have a squad. It will be interesting to see how tired Walsall are.