Match Day Preparation

Avoid alcohol the night before. As well as causing dehydration, it affects your sleep and will lead to fatigue on the pitch. Top-up your carbohydrate levels before kick-off and regular fluid intake will help your focus.

Keep energy and fluid levels topped up during the game. Get carbohydrate on board by taking sips of isotonic drinks during breaks in play, and then a small half-time snack will help maintain your energy in the late stages.

Preparing for the next game begins with recovering from the last. Make sure you start replacing the carbohydrate and fluids you’ve lost within two hours after the match. Don’t leave it any longer than this.

The key to match day nutrition is eating the correct food-groups to ensure you are feeling at your best at kick-off. Hydration is essential throughout the day, and shouldn’t be a case of 10 minutes before kick-off, thinking "I haven’t had any water today" and then drinking far too much water before the match starts. Thirst is a poor indicator of hydration status, so it is far better to check the colour of your urine throughout the day, and adjust your fluid intake accordingly. Eating is essential on match days to ensure you are able to perform at your peak. A carbohydrate-rich breakfast is vital to kickstart your metabolism for the day. A light lunch should be eaten at least 2-3 hours before kick-off. This again should be rich in carbohydrate, e.g. pasta, and low in fat and protein, as both these food groups take significantly longer to be digested and therefore may cause stomach problems during the game. Post-match nutrition is equally important for recovery and foods rich in carbohydrate and protein should be consumed as soon after exercise as possible.

John Brewer- Match Day Preparation

That's a really good question, and is one situation where protocol takes precedent over the best needs of the players and their teams. In an ideal world, players should warm up, then stay out on the pitch whilst keeping warm, then start the game. As we all know, this doesn't happen at the highest level, mainly because players are required to return to the dressing room to receive final instructions from their coach / manager, and the referee. These days, there is also a great deal of "razmatazz" and drama associated with teams coming out of the tunnel together then starting the game. Perhaps, one day, we will see players come out for a set warm up period then go straight into the game, which would make the warm up an integral part of the match day experience for spectators. In the meantime, having worked at a club, I know that coaches will instruct players to keep warm and when they get back to the dressing room after their warm up, so that they stay in good condition and are ready for the kick off. They will often put a layer of clothes back on, and continue with gentle stretching. Then, when they go back onto the pitch before kick off, a couple of minutes will be spent doing some final "re-warming" up!

John Brewer- Match Day Preparation

A warm-up is important because it increases blood flow to the muscles and increases core body temperature, so preparing the body for action and reducing the potential risk of injury. Most teams will start their warm up 30-40 minutes before kick-off, and often make the mistake of immediately kick a ball, before the muscles have been warmed and stretched. The first 5-10 minutes should be spent without a ball, gently jogging and then stretching to raise the temperature - and elasticity - of the muscles, and increase heart rate. Warm muscles will stretch much more easily than cold muscles, so a good tip is to keep some outer layers of clothing on for at least the early stages of a warm up. After this, some slightly faster work, with gentle "sprints" and changes in direction can be added into the warm up, and finally adding in ball work to prepare the specific muscles and joints that will be used when kicking. Teams will often return to the changing room for the last few minutes before kick-off, and during this time it is important to stay warm and keep doing some stretching to prevent the muscles stiffening. On returning to the pitch, and few runs, twists and stretches will be beneficial, and ensure the body is fully prepared before the whistle goes. For more useful hints and tips, check out the Amateur Football section at www.lucozade.com/football.

John Brewer - Match Day Preparation

Ideally you should always try to eat breakfast at least 2-3 hours before kick-off, so this will mean setting an alarm and having breakfast around 0730-8000. This will allow time for the food to be digested, and for the energy from the meal to be absorbed into your body. Since the main aim of this "pre-match breakfast" is to provide a final top up to your essential stores of muscle glycogen, it should contain plenty of carbohydrate foods, such as cereals, toast, bread, honey jam, marmalade and fruit. You should also top up your fluid stores with fruit juice or an isotonic drink. It is important to avoid foods that are high in fat and protein, which includes the traditional English breakfast! Fried foods and high protein foods won't provide you with the energy that you need for the match, and they will take a long time to be digested and could still be sitting in your stomach at kick off time. At half time, a very light carbohydrate snack might help some players, and provide some energy for the second half. However this does need to be easily digestible, so an isotonic drink such as Lucozade Sport is an ideal way of taking in both carbohydrate and fluid.

John Brewer- Match Day Preparation

The biggest problem with the consumption of alcohol is its well-known ability to dehydrate. As staying well-hydrated is vital to performance from both a mental and physical point of view, avoiding alcohol or keeping its consumption to a minimum is advised the night before and the night after playing. On average, it takes the liver about an hour to break down one unit of alcohol, blood alcohol levels decline at a fixed rate irrespective of the amount consumed so there’s a good chance a big night out will still be in your system the next day. Reaction time, balance, coordination, power and speed are some of the capacities that remain compromised after a night of drinking, which are all vital elements to the game.

John Brewer- Match Day Preparation