The first thing we, as coaches, must do in player development is not to create a Game Model. That is one of the biggest mistakes coaches often make. Rather than creating the most magnificent Game Model, we must first focus on “what the player can do.”
This quote is attributed to Paco Seirul·lo.
His words offered me a key insight for re-evaluating my own approach to player development. In this article, I will delve into the Self-Structured Training (Structured Training) methodology he established.
Who is Paco Seirul·lo?
For those in the volleyball community reading this, you might be wondering who Paco Seirul·lo is. He is arguably one of the most influential figures in modern sports training theory.
To describe him succinctly:
He is the person who constructed the training theory for one of the world’s premier football clubs, FC Barcelona, spanning from its youth academy (La Masia) to its first team.
His greatness is clear, but his rarity must also be noted:
he did not originate in the football world. He began in track and field and later coached handball before arriving at football.
Most coaches primarily coach the sport they played. It is rare to have coaching experience across three or more different sports.
However, it is precisely this diverse background that may have allowed him to look beyond specific sports, grasp the essence of football, or rather, the essence of team sports, and establish a training theory applicable across various team sports.
‘Structure’ vs. ‘Element Reduction’
To discuss his methodology, Structured Training, we must first understand the concept of “Structure.”
However, let’s begin by understanding the concept that opposes it: Element Reduction (Reductionism). Understanding reductionism deepens the understanding of structure.
Element Reduction is the idea that any complex whole is merely a combination of small elements. By breaking it down, everything simplifies to fundamental elements—the prime factorization approach.
In contrast, Structure is the idea that the whole is not merely the sum of its elements;
simply combining the elements does not create the whole. To understand an object, one must not isolate (reduce) its elements, but rather grasp the overall structure itself, which includes the interrelation and interaction between the elements.
The Structuralist Approach
For Seirul·lo, the most critical aspect in determining the goal of team sports training is the interrelation and interaction between elements.
In team sports, this interaction encompasses a complex web of relationships involving teammates, the coach, the opposing team, the referee, the venue, the court/pitch, and the ball.
Seirul·lo concluded that the essence of training in team sports lies in constructing a training program while comprehensively considering these interrelations and mutual actions.
This approach treats the “human being” as an extremely complex structure and seeks to holistically grasp the relationship between that person and all the surrounding people, objects, and environment.
What is Self-Structuring (Auto-Structuring)?
Based on this structuralist mindset, Seirul·lo developed his training theory. Crucially, his methodology distinguishes itself from others by focusing on the structuring of the individual player.
He posed the question:
“What makes a player in a team sport what they are?”
He sought to structurally define the inner components of a single player. Through comprehensive research across various academic disciplines on the human learning and acquisition process, he ultimately organized an individual’s abilities in team sports into 8 distinct structures (Self-Structured Model).
This model is actively used for player profiling within the FC Barcelona youth academy.
The 8 ‘Structures’
Here are the 8 structures that define a player in team sports.
- Condition:
Refers to the physical state or fitness level. - Coordination:
Refers to the essential techniques and skills specific to the sport. - Cognition:
Refers to the entire process of information gathering, understanding, and decision-making necessary for play. - Bioenergetic:
Refers to the body’s biological energy required for exercise performance. - Emotional/Volitional:
Refers to the will to play and motivation. - Social:
Refers to interpersonal relationships and communication skills with teammates. - Expressive:
Refers to the ability for self-expression and self-assertion. - Mental:
Refers to the integrative power that unifies all other abilities within the self.
It is vital to understand that these 8 structures are not independent. They exist in an ongoing state of mutual relation and interaction, collectively ‘structuring’ the player. Imagine these 8 structures scattered across a spider web—they are all interconnected and mutually affect one another.
The 3 Crucial Trios (Structures)
Among the 8 structures, Seirul·lo strongly asserts that three have the highest priority and must be prioritized whenever designing training:
Condition, Coordination, and Cognition.
Let’s focus on these three trios:
1. Condition
This refers to physical fitness, or what is commonly known as physical capacity in sports training. Seirul·lo further divides this capacity into 5 structures:
- Strength: The ability to withstand external force.
- Endurance: Stamina.
- Speed: The ability to generate force quickly, often related to power.
- Flexibility: Range of motion.
- Relaxation: The ability to achieve muscle relaxation (Crucial for efficient movement).
In football, Strength, Endurance, and Speed are particularly emphasized. I believes the same emphasis is valid for the sport of volleyball.
2. Coordination
This refers to the essential techniques and skills required for the sport. In volleyball, this would include underhand passing (receiving), overhand passing (setting/receiving), serving, and attacking.
3. Cognition
This refers to the process of information gathering, understanding, and decision-making necessary for play.
In Europe, especially in advanced youth development categories, the importance of Cognition is highly emphasized. I hope its importance is likely to grow in the Japanese volleyball community as well.
Cognition involves gathering both ‘external information’ and ‘internal information.’
External information includes the movement of the ball, the positioning of teammates and opponents.
Internal information involves the player’s own position and situation on the court. Fundamentally, aside from the net dividing the court, the cognitive demands in volleyball are highly similar to those in football.
The 4 Conditions Required for Training Design
Having grasped the concept of ‘Self-Structuring,’ how do we design training that embodies this model?
Seirul·lo lists four conditions that must be met when designing training:
- Be ‘Unique’
- Be ‘Specific’
- Be ‘Individual’
- Be a ‘Process’
1. Be ‘Unique’
All training must align with the club or team’s unique philosophy, Game Model, and development policy. Observing the training should reveal the team’s underlying philosophy.
2. Be ‘Specific’
All training must be specific to the sport. Coaches must understand the fundamental essence (rules) and characteristics of their sport to design training that comprehensively covers them.
3. Be ‘Individual’
All training must take into account the individuality of each player on the team. Players differ in their developmental stage (physical/mental), skill level, personality, learning style (how they acquire knowledge), and talent. Training must be tailored to these individual differences.
4. Be a ‘Process’
Training must follow a logical sequence and be ordered according to a process. Each training session should not be an independent, isolated event, but a structured part of a larger process—with each session connecting to form a coherent narrative.
Seirul·lo’s Maxims
Finally, here are some of Seirul·lo’s profound quotes that offer further insight to coaches designing self-structured training:
“Learning in training is not about repeating something over and over, but about giving players more different experiences and new experiences.”
“A good player is one who can solve a problem in their own way, even in a completely new situation.”
“A ‘habit’ initially creates stability, but eventually leads to destruction.”
“When players engage in a new drill, they fully commit their energy to adapt to that new stimulus, and through this, they improve.”
These maxims force us to contemplate the true essence of ‘Training’.
Conclusion: The Necessity of Trial and Error
This article focused on Seirul·lo’s ‘Self-Structured Training’ to explore the concepts of training design.
For team sports coaches, designing training is one of the most critical responsibilities. It is extremely difficult to design training that is truly optimal for every player within limited time and resources. Indeed, it might be fair to say that perfectly designed training does not exist.
However, it is precisely because of this search for perfection that we must continually engage in deliberate thought (shikō-sakugo) and practical trial-and-error (shikō-sakugo) to confront the monumental task of training design.
If a coach is unwilling or unable to do this, it is time to step away from the profession.
Keywords/Tags: #PacoSeirullo #StructuredTraining #SelfStructuring #TrainingDesign #VolleyballCoaching #YouthDevelopment #Structuralism #CognitionTraining #Coordination #CoachingTheory #FCBarcelona #PlayerProfiling
