Permanently adopted in the post-COVID era, the five-substitute rule has profoundly altered squad management. A recent study published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research confirms the massive impact of substitutes on both physical intensity and match outcomes. Three researchers analyzed GPS data from 48 first-division professional players across 95 official matches over three seasons (a sample of 253 substitutions). Their findings reveal a significant difference in athletic output between starters and players introduced during the game:“Substitutes cover a relative distance per minute 50% to 74% higher than players who played the entire match, while completing 61% to 93% more repeated high-intensity efforts. This gap was observed across all positions, with no difference between home and away matches.” Unsurprisingly, the impact of "finishers" on the scoreboard is just as striking: “Substitutions were 3 to 4 times more likely to improve the scoreline than to worsen it. Injecting fresh legs between the 60th and 80th minutes allows teams to maintain a pace of high-intensity runs that is difficult for a tiring opposition block to contain.”
-> A must-(re)read : What do you expect from your substitutes?