An updated conceptual framework on physical performance and training in soccer: a narrative review.
10 affiliations
- 1Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Via Giovanni Pascoli, 6, 90144, Palermo, Italy. [email protected].
- 2High-Performance Unit, Palermo FC, Italy. [email protected].
- 3Polytechnic University of Coimbra, Polytechnic University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal, Coimbra, Portugal.
- 4Polytechnic University of Coimbra, Sport Physical Activity and Health Research & Innovation Center, Applied Research Institute (i2A), Coimbra, Portugal.
- 5Pegaso Telematic University, Department of Education and Sport Sciences, Naples, Italia.
- 6Department of Computer Science, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
- 7Sport and Exercise Sciences Research Unit, Department of Psychology, Educational Science and Human Movement, University of Palermo, Via Giovanni Pascoli, 6, 90144, Palermo, Italy.
- 8High-Performance Unit, Palermo FC, Italy.
- 9Department of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics, SDU Sport and Health Sciences Cluster, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
- 10Laboratory Sport, Expertise and Performance (EA 7370), French Institute of Sport (INSEP), Paris, France.
Abstract
Soccer practitioners routinely use external load (EL), internal load (IL) and fitness measures to monitor players; however, the same monitoring variable may be interpreted as training load (TL), performance, or athlete capacity depending on its purpose and reference. The conceptual problem addressed in this review is therefore not the absence of definitions for EL, IL, or fitness status, but rather the lack of an integrated interpretative structure explaining how these established constructs should be differentiated when evaluating soccer physical performance. This conceptually focused narrative review therefore aims to clarify the distinction between TL, physical performance output, physiological response, and athlete fitness capacity, and to integrate these established concepts within an interpretative framework for soccer training and monitoring. The framework does not propose match demands, physiological responses, or fitness status as replacements for the established concepts of EL, IL, and fitness. Rather, it organizes their interpretation according to three related questions: what external output did the athlete produce, what physiological response accompanied that output, and what does the relationship between output and response indicate about the athlete's capacity to perform?. By separating the purpose for which monitoring variables are interpreted, the framework aims to support practitioners in selecting appropriate measures and aligning training prescription with either physiological adaptation targets or the external performance demands that players are required to reproduce in competition.
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BibTeX
@article{pillitteri2026updated,
title = {{An updated conceptual framework on physical performance and training in soccer: a narrative review.}},
author = {Guglielmo Pillitteri and Filipe Manuel Clemente and Marco Beato and Alessio Rossi and Hugo Sarmento and Marco Petrucci and Christopher Carling and Antonino Bianco and Giuseppe Battaglia},
journal = {Sports medicine - open},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1186/s40798-026-01127-5},
url = {https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42909553},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - An updated conceptual framework on physical performance and training in soccer: a narrative review.
AU - Guglielmo Pillitteri
AU - Filipe Manuel Clemente
AU - Marco Beato
AU - Alessio Rossi
AU - Hugo Sarmento
AU - Marco Petrucci
AU - Christopher Carling
AU - Antonino Bianco
AU - Giuseppe Battaglia
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Sports medicine - open
DO - 10.1186/s40798-026-01127-5
UR - https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42909553
AB - Soccer practitioners routinely use external load (EL), internal load (IL) and fitness measures to monitor players; however, the same monitoring variable may be interpreted as training load (TL), performance, or athlete capacity depending on its purpose and reference. The conceptual problem addressed in this review is therefore not the absence of definitions for EL, IL, or fitness status, but rather the lack of an integrated interpretative structure explaining how these established constructs should be differentiated when evaluating soccer physical performance. This conceptually focused narrative review therefore aims to clarify the distinction between TL, physical performance output, physiological response, and athlete fitness capacity, and to integrate these established concepts within an interpretative framework for soccer training and monitoring. The framework does not propose match demands, physiological responses, or fitness status as replacements for the established concepts of EL, IL, and fitness. Rather, it organizes their interpretation according to three related questions: what external output did the athlete produce, what physiological response accompanied that output, and what does the relationship between output and response indicate about the athlete's capacity to perform?. By separating the purpose for which monitoring variables are interpreted, the framework aims to support practitioners in selecting appropriate measures and aligning training prescription with either physiological adaptation targets or the external performance demands that players are required to reproduce in competition.
SN - 2199-1170
SN - 2198-9761
ER -