Externally Funded PhD with Crystal Palace FC

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About the Opportunity

Edge Hill University (EHU) in collaboration with Crystal Palace Football Club (CPFC) invites applications for an exciting opportunity focused on monitoring and modelling the training process in Premier League football players. The successful candidate will be embedded within Crystal Palace Football Club Men’s Senior Team working closely with staff and EHU supervisors Dr Dan Weaving and Dr Jay Ranaweera, the successful applicant will be based primarily at CPFC’s London training facility (BR3 1RJ), with quarterly travel to Edge Hill University. 

You will conduct applied impactful research around the monitoring of the training process, and support practical data collection within sport science support at CPFC aligned to this research project. The practical commitment will not exceed 15 hours per week, allowing you to undertake innovative research, whilst developing an awareness of the practical requirements of Premier League football. This PhD is part of a significant research investment at CPFC across postgraduate (Post-Doctoral Fellow, PhD, MRes) projects spanning sport science, rehabilitation, and computer science domains. These projects engage across CPFC’s senior men’s, senior women’s, and men’s academy teams, and you will play a central role in supporting the development of this collaborative research ecosystem. 

About The Research Project

Elite soccer players complete a range of activities (e.g., locomotor and resistance based exercise) within a congested training and match schedule. Over time, this contributes to fluctuating fatigue (acute training effects) and fitness (chronic training effects) profiles (Jeffries et al., 2021). These responses are moderated by a player’s underlying physiological capacities, meaning individuals may respond differently to the same exposure over time. Managing these acute and chronic training effects is a foundational task for practitioners, who must monitor players frequently to inform individualised decision-making. 

Spatiotemporal characteristics (e.g., speed, time, distance) offer a ‘whole-body’ representation of players movement and are commonly used to assess the training process (White et al., 2021; Webber et al., 2024; Wild et al., 2021). Frequent measurement of a players training and match exposure using spatiotemporal variables has been achievable using microtechnology devices (e.g., global positioning systems [GPS] and inertial measurement units [IMU]) for several years. However, classic measures such as high-speed running distances only provide an aggregated representation of movement. They fail to account for the interaction between speed, changes in speed and the angle of movements completed in a sequence (e.g., high-speed running into a deceleration with a large change of direction) (White et al., 2021). This likely leads to an underrepresentation of a players training and match exposure. Recently, a sequential movement pattern-mining (SMP) algorithm has been developed to analyse chains of movement by accounting for the temporal ordering and transitions between movement states (White et al., 2021). However, their application in elite football, and associations with acute and chronic responses remains limited.  

Additionally, the monitoring of training effects has historically either been invasive, expensive or time inefficient within the constraints of senior professional soccer (e.g., regular fixtures) making it difficult to perform assessments at regular intervals for a large squad of players (Leduc and Weaving, 2025). Despite this, balancing valid, reliable and practically feasible measurements of this process and modelling their relationship is still a continual challenge for practitioners. Spatiotemporal characteristics (i.e., contact/flight times; step length/frequency) during sprinting have been reported to discriminate professional rugby union backs during the initial acceleration phase (Wild et al., 2021). In addition, duty factor (proportion of stride time [contact time plus swing time]) when the foot is in contact with the ground) has demonstrated a discriminant ability to profile running styles (terrestrial vs aerial) in Premier League footballers (Hanley et al., 2022). Whilst these studies demonstrate potential of spatiotemporal characteristics to profile training effects, they have currently been explored using high speed camera data, which limits the frequency of measurement for a squad of football players and insight into how they might change across time. Recently, estimation of spatiotemporal variables (e.g., contact/flight time, step time/frequency) from IMU data has demonstrated reliability during a standardised straight line running test (Webber et al., 2024). By combining signal processing methods from GPS (White et al., 2021) and IMU (Webber et al., 2021) highly frequent assessment of spatiotemporal variables during training and matches could be possible. However, the validity, reliability and sensitivity of such approaches has yet to be determined. 

Therefore, the aim of the project is to: 

Evaluate the validity, reliability and sensitivity of signal processing techniques applied to global positioning system and inertial measurement unit data to measure the training process in Premier League football players. 

References 

HANLEY, B., TUCKER, C.B., GALLAGHER, L., PARELKAR, P., THOMAS, L., CRESPO, R. and PRICE, R.J., 2022. Grizzlies and gazelles: Duty factor is an effective measure for categorizing running style in English Premier League soccer players. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 4, p.939676.

HORSLEY, B.J., TOFARI, P.J., HALSON, S.L., KEMP, J.G., DICKSON, J., MANIAR, N. and CORMARCK, S.J., 2021. Does site matter? Impact of inertial measurement unit placement on the validity and reliability of stride variables during running: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Sports Medicine, 51(7), pp. 1449-1489.  

JEFFRIES, A.C., MARCORA, S.M., COUTTS, A.J., WALLACE, L., McCALL, A. and IMPELLIZZERI, F.M., 2022. Development of a revised conceptual framework of physical training for use in research and practice. Sports Medicine, 52(4), pp.709–724.

LEDUC, C. and WEAVING, D., 2025. Invisible monitoring for athlete health and performance: A call for a better conceptualization and practical recommendations. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, (Online ahead of print), pp.1–5.

WEBBER, E., LEDUC, C., EMMONDS, S., EGLON, M., HANLEY, B., IQBAL, Z., SHEORAN, S., CHAISSON, C. and WEAVING, D., 2024. From lab to field: Validity and reliability of inertial measurement unit-derived gait parameters during a standardised run. Journal of Sports Sciences, 42(18), pp.1706–1715.

WILD, J.J., BEZODIS, I.N., NORTH, J.S. and BEZODIS, N.E., 2022. Characterising initial sprint acceleration strategies using a whole-body kinematics approach. Journal of Sports Sciences, 40(2), pp.203–214.

WHITE, R., PALCZEWSKA, A., WEAVING, D., COLLINS, N. and JONES, B., 2022. Sequential movement pattern-mining (SMP) in field-based team-sport: A framework for quantifying spatiotemporal data and improve training specificity? Journal of Sports Sciences, 40(2), pp.164–174.

Details of funding

The successful applicant will:

Be awarded an annual tax-free London weighted stipend of £22,750 per year.Benefit from fully paid tuition fees (UK rate).Laptop to conduct project.Receive training in research skills and project development.Develop applied research skills in a high performance sports organisation. 

Applicant Eligibility

This opportunity is open to UK applicants eligible for home fees only.  Applicants should hold a relevant undergraduate degree at grade 2:1 or above. 

The successful candidate should have excellent data analytical skills to undertake this project and an interest in applied sport science and monitoring of training. Prior relevant experience will also be taken into consideration. Previous experience in applied sport science support would be advantageous.

At Edge Hill University we value the benefits a rich and diverse workforce brings to our community and therefore welcome applications from all sections of society.

How to submit your application

Please complete the online application form via 

https://qpl.edgehill.ac.uk/apex_qlive/f?p=QL4S:LOGIN:::NO:SESSION:APP_SERVICE,APP_COURSE_INSTANCE,APP_THEME:82663334,906554406,TESTRESP

Once you have done this, please send the following items in one email to [email protected] quoting the studentship reference and the project title, in the subject of the email:

a downloaded copy of your application form.A clear research proposal. The proposal of the research can be up to four A4 pages in length (with references as an addition to the proposal) using type Arial 12 point. Further guidance can be found at: https://www.edgehill.ac.uk/departments/support/graduateschool/apply/ a cover letter/personal statement outlining your suitability.a full academic CV (maximum of three A4 pages, using size 12 font) which includes the contact details of two referees.a copy of your qualification certificates and passport. 

Key contacts:

Please think about the support you need and contact one of the below directly:

Research project and supervision questions: please contact Dr Dan Weaving [email protected] PhD registration and qualification questions: please contact [email protected] 

Deadlines and start date.

Closing date: 2nd February 2026

Interviews will take place in the week beginning 16th or 23rd February 2026. These will be based at Crystal Palace Training Ground (Beckenham, BR3 1RJ). 

Candidates invited to interview will be required to deliver a 10-minute presentation on the proposed research topic and demonstrate analytical skills via a practical data feedback task. [DW1] 

The successful applicant will be required to start in February 2026 or as soon as possible thereafter. This is for a full-time PhD position. 

About Us 

At Edge Hill University we believe in the life changing opportunities knowledge can create. Since 1885, we’ve been creating access to knowledge for those who may not have had the opportunity to before. 

Today, the effect we have has a far-reaching impact, not just for those who come to study here but for those who work, invest in, and live in our local communities too. So, if you’ve ever wondered if one person can make a difference, simply speak to our alumni, students, and award-winning staff.

Because for us education isn’t about how much you take in. It’s about what you take out into the world. 

Inspiring minds and changing futures since 1885, Edge Hill University is “A great success story… an institution that improves and impresses year after year” – Times Higher Education.

Closing Date: 02 Feb 2026

Department: Academic