Both maturity and relative age selection biases are entrenched within professional academy soccer programmes. Lay opinion, and that of some scholars, holds that relative age effects exist as a product of advanced biological maturity, that is relatively older players succeed as a consequence of the physical and athletic advantages afforded by earlier maturation. There is, however, a growing body of evidence to suggest that this is not the case, and that relative age and maturation should be considered and treated as independent constructs.
© Copyright 2022 Science and Medicine in Football. Taylor & Francis. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.