Purpose: This study aimed to quantify training and match day (MD) load during three-, four- and five-day microcycles in professional adult football, as well as analyzing the effect of the microcycle length on training load produced the day after the match (MD+1) and the day before the match (MD-1).
Methods: The study involved 20 male professional football players whose external and internal load were monitored for a whole season. Training exposure (EXP), total distance covered (TD), high-speed running distance (HSR), sprint distance (SD), individual sprint distance above 80% of the individual maximum velocity (D>80%), number of accelerations (ACC) and decelerations (DEC) were quantified as well as rating of perceived exertion (RPE) and session training load (sRPE-TL).
Results: Microcycles length affected most of the variables of interest: HSR (F = 9.04, p < 0.01), SD (F = 13.90, p < 0.01), D>80% (F = 20.25, p < 0.01), accelerations (F = 10.12, p < 0.01) and decelerations (F = 6.01, p < 0.01). There was an interaction effect between training day and microcycle type for SD (F = 5.46, p < 0.01), D>80% (F = 4.51, p < 0.01), accelerations (F = 2.24, p = 0.06) and decelerations (F = 3.91, p < 0.01).
Conclusions: Coaches seem to be influenced by shorter microcycles in their training proposal, preferring sessions with a reduced muscle impact during shorter microcycles. Independently by the length of the congested fixture microcycle, the daily load seems to decrease when MD approaches.