No academy in our country has equipment like this, while innovative solutions are used by, among others, Borussia Dortmund, Fulham, Real Sociedad, and Benfica Lisbon. For several weeks now, the PlayerMaker system has been supporting the U-15 team’s staff in their daily work and is already producing its first results. “This gives us a more complete picture of the players’ abilities, which helps with their all-round development,” says Wisła Kraków U-15 head coach Dawid Ślusarczyk. Soon, the equipment will also be used by the U14 team and younger age groups of the Wisła Kraków Football Academy.

Modern PlayerMaker equipment, used to analyze the individual parameters of each player, was brought to the Wisła Kraków Football Academy thanks to financial support from the Socios Wisła Association. This innovative equipment, used by many respected academies across Europe, enables the monitoring and analysis of individual player parameters, thereby supporting the coaching staff’s daily work. Konrad Czajkowski, coordinator of the U12-U7 stage and coach of the Wisła Academy’s U-10 team, was able to admire the results of the work during his internship at Borussia Dortmund.

“This device combines the functions of GPS vests with the monitoring of technical aspects, creating a versatile tool. We began the first tests with the U15 group, where the system quickly proved intuitive for both the players and us. PlayerMaker measures many parameters that support physical and technical analysis. In the physical category, it monitors, among other things, the distance covered by a player, running speed, and the number of sprints and accelerations. This enables us to track endurance and dynamics precisely, which in turn allows us to plan training sessions accurately and prevent injuries. From a technical perspective, the system analyzes ball control, the number of touches, the intensity of work with the ball, and dominance of one foot. This gives us a more complete picture of the players’ abilities, which helps with their all-round development. After every match, the players are eager to analyze the results and expect feedback from us on the parameters they achieved, which increases their motivation to continue working,” emphasizes Wisła Kraków U-15 head coach Dawid Ślusarczyk.

These innovative devices, which provide an in-depth analysis of every player, support Wisła Kraków’s youth coaches in their daily work. The system will soon also be introduced in the U-14 team’s sessions and will then be gradually implemented in the training of younger players at the Wisła Academy. Everything is to be done step by step.

“PlayerMaker is used every day, especially with the U15 group. During every training session, we tag all exercises, allowing us to measure key physical and technical parameters and gain insight into the players’ progress. With the U14 group, we plan to introduce the system for weekend matches, which will enable us to analyze match situations and provide valuable information about the players. For groups younger than U14, we plan regular training sessions using this technology, allowing players to be introduced to the analysis of their progress at an earlier stage,” Ślusarczyk adds.

Not just PlayerMaker. Technology is playing an increasingly important role

The PlayerMaker system is not the only technological innovation used by coaches at the Wisła Kraków Football Academy. They also have, among other things, VEO 3 cameras with the highest-tier package. This provides another wide range of analytical possibilities.

“The technology enables us to record training sessions and matches in high quality, making subsequent analysis easier. Veo Analytics features allow us to accurately assess how players perform their tasks on the pitch, while storing the material in the ‘cloud’ provides easy access to recordings. Creating player profiles enables an individual analysis of their progress, and the Veo Player Spotlight feature allows key actions during the game to be highlighted. In addition, thanks to automatic ball tracking, we can easily capture the most important moments of a match without the need for constant camera operation. This significantly facilitates the documentation and subsequent discussion of match situations with the players,” explains coach Dawid Ślusarczyk.

It is still only an addition

However, the Wisła Kraków U-15 coach clearly emphasizes that, in the age of modern technology, coaching expertise and the ability to communicate directly with players remain important.

“The player’s development is the most important thing, and technology should serve that goal. It allows us to plan the training process more effectively and monitor progress, but we must not forget the coach’s hard skills when planning training, or the soft skills that are crucial for reaching the player. Combining technology with coaching skills enables the individual development of every player,” concluded coach Dawid Ślusarczyk.