Impact of the number of players on the emergence of creative movements in small-sided soccer games: a systematic review emphasizing deliberate practice

INTRODUCTION: Creativity is a recognized quality in various areas, including sports. Within the training processes, various modifications to objectives, game configurations, rules, among other factors, can be considered to favor creative solutions to the tactical problems inherent to soccer. This systematic review aimed to identify the impact of the number of players on the emergence of creative movements in small-sided soccer games, emphasizing deliberate practice. METHODS: A systematic review of Scopus, PubMed, Scielo, PsycInfo, SportDiscus and Lilacs databases was performed according to PRISMA guidelines. Eligibility criteria were defined based on the elements of population, context and concept. Only full articles published in scientific journals written in English were included. No period restriction was applied. RESULTS: Five papers were included and the results of studies indicate greater number of actions, variability, and creativity in small-sided games compared to formal soccer matches. When comparing different small-sided game formats, 5 v 5 showed higher values in terms of total number of actions compared to 7 v 7, and the absolute number of original and creative actions tended to decrease as the game format increased. Imbalanced small-sided games format can promote increased exploratory behavior. Structural manipulation in goal positioning in 5 v 5 games may also influence the originality of tactical behaviors, while the use of different ball types in 4 v 4 games appears to decrease fluency values. In 6 v 6 games, fluency and versatility are negatively impacted. CONCLUSION: Reduced game formats with fewer players and in smaller field dimensions provide more suggestive environment for exploratory behavior, variability and original and creative actions. The protocol was registered on the Open Science Framework (OSF) on 2 December 2022 (DOI: 10.17605/OSF.IO/VN6YZ). SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION: [https://osf.io/jmf4k/].