Video Analysis for Players

Over the past few years, we’ve published blogs on how to produce professional video presentations, how to analyze soccer matches, how to prepare a game plan, and many other topics designed to improve your video analysis work.

We’d like to invite you to browse our blog and feel free to read any of these articles, but today, we want to go a little farther and focus on getting the analysis into the hands of the player.

This is a practice which is already done in practically every sport and every level, from the grassroots to academies and right through to the pro leagues.

The Purpose of Video Analysis

Video analysis for players has two main objectives:

•    To educate through video.
•    To anticipate an opponent’s strategy.

These two objectives are, without doubt, related, but depending on factors such as the age of the player, the level they are competing and, to some extent, the goals of the coaching staff, the prominence of each will differ.

Education Through Video

Video analysis has a great capacity to educate. The goal of any sports school, academy or youth team is to train players on a personal level in order to compete at a higher level. They need to be made aware of their strengths and weaknesses, reinforcing the former and correcting the latter.

The work done at this level, in non-professional soccer, is usually focused on the progression of the player. Here, video analysis is best employed as a learning tool. In particular, it gives the player the power to analyze their own performance and gives them the power to improve exponentially.

It also encourages a greater level of engagement from the player, since the use of video will increase the capacity of their attention span and allow them to concentrate more. This is key to their evolution as a player as, in the professional world, many hours of video are consumed each week, whether that be through opposition analysis, own analysis, set piece analysis, training analysis or any other aspect of the game.

Anticipating an Opponent’s Strategy

This is one of the maxims of video analysis, especially when the main objective is to improve team performance rather than individual performance. In this case, the analyst will attempt to understand the strengths and weaknesses of a rival team and try to anticipate the tactics that they might employ in an upcoming game.

In soccer, for example, knowing that your next opponent is strong when attacking on the wings but weak when defending high crosses will help coaches devise a game plan for the match. Training will be focused on defending the wings and attacking wide and high.

In basketball, if you know that your opponent’s top scorer hits a lot of three pointers and that the team has a hard time playing with their pivots, training can be redirected to blocking long shots from that particular player and forcing them to play on the inside.

You can find relevant examples like this in any sport.

We teach our players the strengths and weaknesses of the opposition so that they are more knowledgeable when it comes to the game. It’s like in education, we give them the information so that they are more prepared when it comes to the final exam.

How to Share Information with Players

Ok, you’ve probably now got a fair idea of how useful video analysis can be for both teams and individuals. But what’s the best way to deliver your insights?

Well, there’s no set formula which is 100% foolproof and suitable for your team. Obviously, every team is different with distinct needs and you need to forge your own path in this regard. But we do have some recommendations for you.

In an ideal world, the best way to share your insights with players would be face-to-face and one-to-one, or at least in a small group. This would allow you to get your information directly into the hands of those who need it.

But we know that this is not always realistic. Between traveling, training and, of course, games, there’s not always enough time to be able to sit down with every individual player in the team.

That’s why, in an increasingly digitized world, many coaches now choose to share their video work with players via email or messaging apps.

However, the downside of this is that the analyst doesn’t have full control over the information. There’s no way to ensure that the player has viewed the video clips or read the associated notes. The analyst can’t control who the video is shared with either.

In addition, using email and apps, you’re not working in an environment that’s dedicated to the team. This means that videos and info can get lost in the flood of content that’s available online.

But we’ve got a great solution for you…

Sharimg

At Nacsport, we always recommend using the Sharimg platform for storing and sharing your analysis work with players. As well as addressing the points we mentioned in the previous section, using Sharimg can also speed up your analysis workflows.

Using the Sharimg platform in synergy with Nacsport, you can:

•    Upload your analysis and presentations directly from Nacsport.
•    Work independently in the cloud.
•    Share your analysis data in the cloud with the rest of the coaching staff.
•    Attach other files such as images, pdfs and independent videos.
•    Create a personalized online database of analyses for your players and team over the course of a season through the team tracking area.
•    Share videos with your players and take total control over the shared content.

Let’s dwell on that last point for a second, as it’s directly related to the main objectives of this article.

Sharimg offers complete control over the content you share with players. You can determine exactly which players have access to the videos you share. You can also give precise instructions to each through private messages attached to each video. In addition, the platform will monitor and report whether or not the player has accessed the videos and how many times they have viewed it.

Working in the cloud with the platform opens up a wide variety of possibilities in the working methodology of the coach or analyst as they can better determine what content they show in video sessions or what clips they share individually. This avoids or softens some stressful situations that can occur during the working week when there is a lack of time or workspace to carry out these tasks.

And the advantages of using Sharimg don’t end there. The platform has a cell phone app, available for both iOS and Android that can be used to manage information and to give access to both coaches and players. This means that sharing information is quick, easy and lightweight.

When using the Sharimg app, videos can be watched but not downloaded. This means that you can share your work, confident in knowing that only the people you share it with can see it. This ensures confidentiality and security, meaning you can rest easy in the knowledge that your videos will not be leaked or misused in any way.

There are also advantages for the players. They can watch videos that have been prepared specifically for them as many times as they need to. They can also participate actively in the process by asking questions or leaving comments that can be picked up by you or the coaches.

Without a doubt, Sharimg fosters team chemistry and encourages direct participation in the video analysis process.

Conclusion

Sharing videos with players is a key stage in the video analysis process which, if not carried out correctly, can reduce the effectiveness of the work you have done.

There are online platforms available which have been developed specifically for sharing your work and which can optimize your analysis workflows. Platforms such as Sharimg can focus the work of the analyst and improve communication at any club.

If you have any questions about how to use the Sharimg platform in conjunction with Nacsport, or about any other issue raised in this article, please don’t hesitate to get in contact with us and our team of experts will be happy to discuss your needs and guide you through the process.

Thanks for reading.