Research Behind xGSoccer

The underpinning philosophy for all xG Soccer programs is research and data-informed. The importance of research-informed sport pedagogy in coaching soccer plays a vital role in enhancing teaching methods, promoting evidence-informed practice, supporting player development, addressing challenges, and driving continuous improvement. It provides a foundation of knowledge that informs coaching and teaching practices, leading to better outcomes for players and coaches.

Talent identification and recruitment in youth soccer:

Recruiter's perceptions of the key attributes for player recruitment

"The findings indicate technical (i.e., first touch, one-verse-one ability, and striking the ball), tactical (i.e., decision-making) and psychological skills (i.e., coachability and positive attitude) are perceived as most important within the talent identification process." (See table below)

Source:

Larkin, P., & O’Connor, D. (2017). Talent identification and recruitment in youth soccer: Recruiter’s perceptions of the key attributes for player recruitment. PLOS One, 12(4), 1-15.

Establishing consensus of position-specific predictors for elite youth soccer in England

“…a consensus of the attributes that scouts use to inform their decisions by considering the position-specific nature of desired attributes.

Source:

Roberts, S. J., McRobert, A. P., Lewis, C. J., & Reeves, M. J. (2019). Establishing consensus of position-specific predictors for elite youth soccer in England. Science and Medicine in Football, 3(3), 205-213.

How Scouts Identify Talented Players

"When examining the general performance categories, scouts mainly reported considering attributes in the technical performance category as predictors of future soccer performance. This was followed by tactical and perceptual-cognitive skills, physical, physiological, and motor skills,

personality-related and mental skills, which were considered most important approximately equally often."

Source:

Bergkamp, T. L., Frencken, W. G., Niessen, A. S. M., Meijer, R. R., & den Hartigh, R. J. (2022). How soccer scouts identify talented players. European Journal of Sport Science, 22(7), 994-1004.

What it takes to become a high performer in soccer

"Players started their participation in an elite training academy at 11 to 12 years of age. There were some relatively minor differences between countries, but generally, the developmental activities of the players followed a mixture of the early engagement and specialisation pathways, rather than early diversification."

Source:

Ford, P. R., Carling, C., Garces, M., Marques, M., Miguel, C., Farrant, A., ... & Williams, M. (2012). The developmental activities of elite soccer players aged under-16 years from Brazil, England, France, Ghana, Mexico, Portugal and Sweden. Journal of Sports Sciences, 30(15), 1653-1663.

Why professional soccer clubs use xG (Expected Goals)

“…match outcomes in football are disproportionately influenced by randomness because football is a low-scoring game (2.7 goals) in which winning and losing is often determined by a single goal. Thus, match results occasionally fail to reflect the true level of play of the two teams on the pitch, and it is questionable whether match outcomes truly represent a reliable performance indicator".

Source:

Brechot, M., & Flepp, R. (2020). Dealing with randomness in match outcomes: How to rethink performance evaluation in European club football using expected goals. Journal of Sports Economics, 21(4), 335-362.

Why analyzing sport performance is crucial to player development

“In order to provide meaningful and reliable feedback, the coach must first observe and evaluate performance. Traditional coaching intervention has often involved subjective observations and conclusions based on the coach’s perceptions, biases and previous experiences. However, a number of studies have revealed that subjective observations are potentially both unreliable and inaccurate.”

Source:

Hughes, M., Franks, I. M., Franks, I. M., & Dancs, H. (Eds.). (2019). Essentials of performance analysis of sport. Routledge.

Research Behind xG Soccer Shooting & Finishing Curriculum

The curriculum for the xG soccer shooting and finishing program is based on the research conducted by American Soccer Analysis' "Where Goals Come From". This is an in-depth examination of the most efficient ways to score goals.

The 'Progressive Pass' is the most effective type of pass for scoring goals. More specifically, through balls and cutbacks have a conversion rate of over 25% in the four top European leagues and MLS, and the conversion rate is also the same in women’s professional soccer leagues (NWSL) (see charts below).

The curriculum for the xG Soccer shooting and finishing program is based upon the key progressive passes in addition to a focus on finishing in zones 14 and 17. (Source: All information and graphics are from American Soccer Analysis).

The use of zone 14 as a strategic attacking area in the English Championship

"From the available literature zone 14 appears as an area of strategic importance for both defence and attacking. Exploiting the area in attack is linked to goal-scoring and creating shooting opportunities, which in turn highlights the need for a well-organized defense to protect the area."

Source:

G.Rees, N. James, M. Hughes, J. Taylor, G. Vučković (2010). In: Research Methods and Performance Analysis.