ABSTRACT
Morphological Variation Factor has been applied to analyse the within-subject and between-subjects morphological variability of the body pattern in the execution of a standardised soccer penalty kick. In order to provide a comprehensive evaluation of the variability of the body pattern in the execution of the penalty, a MVF was further calculated as mean of the coefficients of variation (CV). The results showed that a good technique is necessary for a successful performance of soccer penalties. The high reproducibility of the right knee-left knee distance showed that the neuromuscular co-ordination for this reciprocal position, which greatly influences the result of the penalty, was probably very high in this elite player. The method also indicates which distances and landmarks are more or less responsible for the shape reproducibility. The proposed method may support the coach with quantitative information about the neuromuscular co-ordination of the player while performing a selected movement such as taking a penalty kick.
