Instep kick is considered one of the fundamental kicks in football. Its kicking motion performance is the foundation for all other foot kicks in football, which are executed with a controlled movement in the knee joint (“knee kick”). When it is technically correct, i.e. characterized by a quick flexion and a rapid extension at the knee, and with all muscles of the kicking leg tense, this kick is considered to be the strongest and the most precise. It is most commonly used for shots on goal. From a technical point of view, it is quite straightforward and due to its similarity with the movement of the leg during walking, some experts place this type of kick among the ones the beginners should learn first. Since the kicking motion performance is the foundation for all other foot kicks, it is important to give it a lot of attention in younger categories, when the plasticity of the nervous system is greater, and the moving pattern can be therefore easily and quickly memorized for the entire life. Electromyography is a technique for the continuous evaluation of bioelectrical activity of muscles.
The examination group comprised 13 boys, divided into two sub-groups (better prepared, less prepared). Each of them executed a series of instep kicks. First it was kicking with maximum strength, and then with maximum precision, towards the goal, sized 3x2 m. They executed at least 5 successful kicks of both kinds of kicks. Electromyography (EMG) was used to measure muscle activity of the soleus muscle, the gastrocnemius muscle, and the tibialis anterior muscle. To compare the activation of the muscles between the sub-groups of both better and lesser physically prepared participants, muscle activity data was used.
As far as the type of the instep kick is concerned, the results did not show any statistically relevant differences between the two sub-groups.
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