Squad management, injury and match performance in a professional soccer team over a Championship-winning season

Squad management, injury and physical, tactical and technical match performance were investigated in a professional soccer team across five consecutive league seasons (2008–2013, 190 league games) with specific focus on a championship-winning season (2010/11). For each player, match participation and time-loss injuries were recorded, the latter prospectively diagnosed by the team's physician. Defending and attacking tactical and technical performance indicators investigated included ball possession and possession in opponents' half, passes, forward passes, completed passes and forward passes, crosses and completed crosses, goal attempts and goal attempts on target, successful final third entries, free-kicks and 50/50 duels won/lost. Physical performance measures included total distance and distance covered at high-speeds (≥19.1 km/h). Results showed that during the 2010/11 season, squad utilisation was lowest potentially owing to the observed lower match injury occurrence and working days lost to injury thereby increasing player availability. In 2010/11, the team won both its highest number of points and conceded its lowest number of goals especially over the second half of this season. The team also won its highest number of games directly via a goal from a substitute and scored and conceded a goal first on the highest and lowest number of occasions, respectively. While multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) detected a significant difference in some attacking and defensive performance indicators across the five seasons, these were generally not distinguishing factors in 2010/11. Similarly, univariate ANOVAs showed a significant difference in running distances covered across seasons, but the trend was for less activity in 2010/11

Gender Differences in Technical-Tactical Behaviour of la Liga Spanish Football Teams

[Abstract] The aim of this study was to identify differences in technical-tactical behaviour between the men and women first division football teams of the Spanish league, to this end 68 matches corresponding to 2016/17 season were analysed. A comparative analysis of the medians was carried out using the Mann-Whitney U-tests were conducted as post hoc tests. The size effect of this test was calculated and, finally, we performed a grouping of the variables through the clustering bootstrapping technique in both groups. We have detected statistically significant differences (p <0.01) regarding all accurate passes, in favour of men, as well as a greater number of yellow cards. In female football, a greater number of picking up free balls, interceptions, lost balls, recoveries and challenges are produced. Finally, in women's football a greater number of attacks are also carried out, both positional and counterattacks than in men. The clustering analysis allowed us to identify that in male football, the circumstance of receiving a red card is closely related to the number of goals conceded and most of the shots on goal are achieved by positional attacks. In the case of women's football, ball possession on own half is closely related to the number of losses. Data proves the existence of technicaltactical differences between male and female football of the La Liga teams. Such detailed analysis could be useful for gender-specific training information for optimal preparation. However, more research is warranted to establish the main gender differences and characterize women's football.We gratefully acknowledge the support of Generalitat Valenciana proyect: Análisis observacional de la acción de juego en el fútbol de élite (Consellería d´Educació, Investigació, Cultura i Esport) during the period: 2017-2019 (GV2017/044). We also acknowledge the support of Universidad Católica de Valencia “San Vicente Mártir” project: Estudios en el deporte de élite desde los Mixed Methods: técnicas de análisis de estudios comparativos, during the period 2018 [Grant UCV2017/230-002]Generalitat Valenciana; GV2017/044Universidad Católica de Valencia; UCV2017/230-00

Carving out new business models in a small company through contextual ambidexterity: the case of a sustainable company

Business model innovation (BMI) and organizational ambidexterity have been pointed out as mechanisms for companies achieving sustainability. However, especially considering small and medium enterprises (SMEs), there is a lack of studies demonstrating how to combine these mechanisms. Tackling such a gap, this study seeks to understand how SMEs can ambidextrously manage BMI. Our aim is to provide a practical artifact, accessible to SMEs, to operationalize BMI through organizational ambidexterity. To this end, we conducted our study under the design science research to, first, build an artifact for operationalizing contextual ambidexterity for business model innovation. Then, we used an in-depth case study with a vegan fashion small e-commerce to evaluate the practical outcomes of the artifact. Our findings show that the company improves its business model while, at the same time, designs a new business model and monetizes it. Thus, our approach was able to take the first steps in the direction of operationalizing contextual ambidexterity for business model innovation in small and medium enterprises, democratizing the concept. We contribute to theory by connecting different literature strands and to practice by creating an artifact to assist managemen

EVALUATING ENTERPRISE AGILITY – AN EXPLORATORY RESEARCH ON CONSUMER BEHAVIOR INDICATORS

Starting from a model of the factors which are directly involved in the consumer’s buying behavior – brand image, the perception of purchase risk, the attitude towards the product category and, in this context, the attitude towards the brand, the buying iAgile enterprise, exploratory research, focus group, brand image, customer preferences, buyer risk, customer attitude, buying intentions, post-purchase satisfaction.

Time and Energy Managed Operations (TEMO): Cessna Citation II Flight Trials

From 9-26 October 2015 the Netherlands Aerospace Centre (NLR) in cooperation with Delft University of Technology (DUT) has executed Clean Sky flight trials with the Cessna Citation II research aircraft. The trials consisted of several descents and approaches at the Eelde airport near Groningen, demonstrating the TEMO (Time and Energy Managed Operations) concept developed in the Clean Sky Joint Technology Initiative research programme as part of the Systems for Green Operations (SGO) Integrated Technology Demonstrator. A TEMO descent aims to achieve an energy-managed idle-thrust continuous descent operation (CDO) while satisfying ATC time constraints, to maintain runway throughput. An optimal descent plan is calculated with an advanced on-board real-time aircraft trajectory optimisation algorithm considering forecasted weather and aircraft performance. The optimised descent plan was executed using the speed-on-elevator mode of an experimental Fly-By-Wire (FBW) system connected to the pitch servo motor of the Cessna Citation II aircraft. Several TEMO conceptual variants have been flown. It has been demonstrated that the TEMO concept enables arrival with timing errors below 10 seconds. The project was realised with the support of CONCORDE partners Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) and PildoLabs from Barcelona, and the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI).Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Report on the Bombing of Our Own Troops during Operation “Tractable”: 14 August 1944

Editor’s Note: Operation “Tractable“ was the second major Canadian operation in Normandy designed to break through the German defensive perimeter to reach Falaise. Like its predecessor, Operation “Totalize,“ “Tractable“ was to employ heavy bombers to augment the firepower available to the troops. The use of heavy bombers in a tactical role was a relatively new tasking for the strategic force and required precise targetting to destroy and disrupt enemy positions. The strategic bomber force, British and American, had made significant contributions to the land battle in Normandy, but there had been mistakes, most notably during Operation “Cobra” when the American 8th Air Force had twice bombed their own troops on 24–25 July causing 136 deaths and an additional 621 casualties. For Operation “Tractable,” the medium bombers of 2 Group, 2nd Tactical Air Force were to bomb German gun, mortar and tank positions along the startline immediately prior to H-Hour. This was to be followed by a large attack by Bomber Command hours after the start of the advance. This bombing was intended “to destroy or neutralize enemy guns, harbours, and defended lacalities on the right flank and to prevent any enemy movement from this area to the area of attack.” (First Canadian Army Op Instruction No. 14, August 1944). Though the air support was largely a success, a number of aircraft mistakenly bombed short hitting units of First Canadian Army. In total, over 150 Allied soldiers were killed and 241 wounded by the short bombing. Though it had little impact on the outcome of “Tractable,” there were a number of investigations launched to understand why the short bombing occurred. The report which follows, dated 25 August 1944 and written by Air Chief Marshal Arthur Harris, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Bomber Command, contains the official RAF post–mortem on the reasons for the accidental bombing of First Canadian Army