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Article

Maturity-Related Variations in Morphology, Body Composition, and Somatotype Features among Young Male Football Players

by
Denis Čaušević
1,
Babina Rani
2,
Qais Gasibat
3,
Nedim Čović
1,
Cristina Ioana Alexe
4,
Silviu Ioan Pavel
4,*,
Lucian Ovidiu Burchel
5,* and
Dan Iulian Alexe
6
1
Faculty of Sport and Physical Education, University of Sarajevo, 71000 Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
2
Department of Physical Rehabilitation & Medicine (Physiotherapy), Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh 160012, India
3
Department of Sports Studies, Universiti Putra Malaysia UPM, Serdang 43400, Malaysia
4
Department of Physical Education and Sports Performance, Faculty of Movement, Sports and Health Sciences, “Vasile Alecsandri” University of Bacău, 600115 Bacău, Romania
5
Department of Environmental Sciences, Physics, Physical Education and Sports Faculty of Sciences, Lucian Blaga University in Sibiu, 550024 Sibiu, Romania
6
Department of Physical and Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Movement, Sports and Health Sciences, “Vasile Alecsandri” University of Bacău, 600115 Bacău, Romania
*
Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Children 2023, 10(4), 721; https://doi.org/10.3390/children10040721
Submission received: 24 March 2023 / Revised: 10 April 2023 / Accepted: 12 April 2023 / Published: 13 April 2023
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainability in Team Sports for Young Athletes)
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Abstract

The study aimed to investigate differences in anthropometry, body composition (BC), and somatotype in young football players of the same chronological age according to the maturity stage. Overall, 64 elite players (age: 14.28 ± 0.46 years) were evaluated for standing and sitting body height, girth measures, and BC using the bioelectric impedance scale and skinfold thickness. In total, two-thirds (73.44%, n = 47) of football players were classified as on-time maturers, 12.50% (n = 8) were early maturing, and 14.06% (n = 9) were late maturing. Standing and sitting height, leg length, fat-free mass, and muscle mass were significantly different (p < 0.001) across maturity groups. A significant decrease (p < 0.05) with maturity progression was seen for subscapular and suprailiac skinfolds along with a girth increase at all sites (p < 0.05). Early maturers were balanced ectomorphs, while on-time and late maturers featured mesomorph–ectomorph characteristics. The obtained results suggested that mature players have better BC presented as a lower fat percentage along with higher muscle mass, advantages in circumferences, and longitudinal dimensions of the body with highlighted mesomorph features. Maturity can have a substantial influence on body measures, thereby affecting sport-specific performance. Early maturers can use their anthropometric advantages and compensate for a lack of talent, consequently preventing even participation of physically undeveloped players in training. A better understanding of maturity, BC, and somatotypes can help in the selection of young talented players.
Keywords: team sports; youth athletes; soccer; biological age team sports; youth athletes; soccer; biological age

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MDPI and ACS Style

Čaušević, D.; Rani, B.; Gasibat, Q.; Čović, N.; Alexe, C.I.; Pavel, S.I.; Burchel, L.O.; Alexe, D.I. Maturity-Related Variations in Morphology, Body Composition, and Somatotype Features among Young Male Football Players. Children 2023, 10, 721. https://doi.org/10.3390/children10040721

AMA Style

Čaušević D, Rani B, Gasibat Q, Čović N, Alexe CI, Pavel SI, Burchel LO, Alexe DI. Maturity-Related Variations in Morphology, Body Composition, and Somatotype Features among Young Male Football Players. Children. 2023; 10(4):721. https://doi.org/10.3390/children10040721

Chicago/Turabian Style

Čaušević, Denis, Babina Rani, Qais Gasibat, Nedim Čović, Cristina Ioana Alexe, Silviu Ioan Pavel, Lucian Ovidiu Burchel, and Dan Iulian Alexe. 2023. "Maturity-Related Variations in Morphology, Body Composition, and Somatotype Features among Young Male Football Players" Children 10, no. 4: 721. https://doi.org/10.3390/children10040721

APA Style

Čaušević, D., Rani, B., Gasibat, Q., Čović, N., Alexe, C. I., Pavel, S. I., Burchel, L. O., & Alexe, D. I. (2023). Maturity-Related Variations in Morphology, Body Composition, and Somatotype Features among Young Male Football Players. Children, 10(4), 721. https://doi.org/10.3390/children10040721

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