Document Type : Research Paper I Open Access I Released under CC BY-NC 4.0 license
Authors
- Hojat Dehghanzade 1
- Seyed Hojjat Zamani Sani 2
- Zahra Fathi Rezaei 2
- Ramin Amirsasan 3
- Dante Mantini 4
1 Tabriz University
2 1. Department of Motor Behavior, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
3 Department of Exercise Physiology, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
4 Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, Department of Movement Sciences, KU Leuven University, Leuven, Belgium
Abstract
This study aimed to examine the combined effects of mental imagery, mental fatigue, and caffeine consumption on dribbling performance and mood in adolescent football players. Forty male players aged 15–17 were randomly assigned to four groups: mental fatigue + caffeine, mental fatigue + placebo, caffeine without mental fatigue, and control. After completing a football dribbling imagery protocol, a mental fatigue task (Attention Network Test for 30 minutes), and caffeine intake (3 mg/kg body weight), dribbling performance and mood were assessed in pre- and post-tests. Mixed ANOVA results showed significant differences among groups. Players who consumed caffeine without experiencing mental fatigue performed better than those in the mental fatigue + placebo group (p = 0.003). Caffeine intake also reduced perceived mental fatigue in both fatigued and non-fatigued conditions: the fatigued + caffeine group reported lower fatigue than the fatigued + placebo group (p = 0.011), and the non-fatigued + caffeine group reported less fatigue than the fatigued + placebo group (p = 0.001). Moreover, the non-fatigued + caffeine group experienced greater vigor compared to the fatigued + placebo group (p = 0.025). Overall, caffeine improved both technical performance and mood when players were not mentally fatigued, whereas mental fatigue led to performance decline and negative mood changes. Controlled caffeine supplementation may therefore serve as an effective strategy to enhance the physical and psychological readiness of adolescent football players, although further investigation is needed under fatigued conditions.
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