EFFECT OF TECHNICAL TRAINING ON REDUCING FUNCTIONAL ASYMMETRIES IN SOCCER: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Abstract

Abstract: Lateral asymmetries are known as the difference in control capacity between homologous limbs on the right and left side of the body. Training with a non-dominant limb can reduce asymmetries between limbs, generating new questions about parameters such as training duration, applicable tests and appropriate methods. The present systematic review study aimed to investigate the effect of non-preferred limb training on reducing functional asymmetries in young soccer players. To this end, a search for studies was carried out in the Google Scholar, SciELO, LILACS and PubMed databases, published between the years 1990 and 2023, using the following descriptors in English: Young Players, Technical Training, Motor Skills, Preferred Limb, Functional Asymmetries and their equivalents in Portuguese. After the search, a total of 237 articles were found. After analyzing the titles, 139 articles were excluded, leaving only 98 studies. After reading the abstracts, 93 were excluded in line with the predefined criteria, and 5 articles were selected for analysis. As inclusion criteria, only empirical studies carried out with male players aged between 10 and 20 years old, studies published with peer review, pre-test and post-test designs published in English and Portuguese between the 1990 and 2023 were used. This systematic review concluded that training, when focused on the non-preferred limb, or both, in a guided and systematic way, presents satisfactory results in reducing functional asymmetries.