The average professional player now covers over 10km in a 90-minute match. These days it’s not just about increasing lung capacity – the demands of the game have increased so exponentially that being bigger, more powerful and explosive is more critical than ever. Get yourself on a treadmill or find any open space fit for running. Interval training is not a traditional stamina builder but it is what you’ll find most Premier League players doing to help improve their VO2 Max (the maximum rate at which someone’s body can consume oxygen during exercise), hitting maximum sprinting at high tempo before jogging and then going all out once more, allowing them to build the stamina and flourish deep into added time.
Traditionally something only wingers had, it’s now vital for players in all positions to have sprint speed. Come the end of their career, even modern greats including Rio Ferdinand will confess how hard it can be without it. Maximising your own potential to run fast for shorter bursts will stand you head and shoulders above the rest, so try using weighted sled pulls and parachute sprints, which will help push your legs well beyond their means. By building up strength in the hamstrings and quadriceps with isometric and eccentric movements under increased pressure, you’ll become a speed merchant in no time.
