Journal of Physical Education and Sport, cilt.21, sa.1, ss.81-87, 2021 (Scopus)
Morphological characteristics of athletes determine their success in certain sports in different ways. Knowledge of these characteristics is required to determine their significance for success in competitive sports. The aim of this study was to determine whether there are differences in the morphological characteristics, body composition and explosive strength of the lower extremities in relation to the playing position in a team of top football players. The sample of respondents consisted of football players who compete in the highest rank of competition, the Serbian Super League. The total number of respondents in the study included 20 female football players (aged 19.73 ± 4.81, body height of 167.37 ± 6.35 cm, and body weight 59.68 ± 6.76 kg). The results of this study indicated that there are statistically significant differences in relation to the position in the team among professional football players regarding assessment of the explosive power of the lower extremities but, only in the squat jump (SJ) test. Differences were noticeable between midfielders and attacking players. The countermovement jump (CMJ) and CMJ free arms tests showed no statistical significances. Values for assessing body composition, such as body fat, lean body mass, and muscle mass in absolute and relative values did not show differences between players in different playing positions. Regarding the morphological values of football players in different playing positions, differences were also not noticeable. In further research, to obtain the most relevant results, it is necessary to include an even larger number of respondents and to, include other ranks of competition as the respondent sample.