I recently started feeling some discomfort in my knee after Wednesday and Saturday matches. It's not sharp pain but I'm worried it might turn into something serious. I do warm up but maybe it's not enough, I'm not sure if I need to change something about the way I play or if I need to strengthen it more.
Warming up is important, but most knee problems come from weakness in your calves, thighs, and hips - if you only stretch without strengthening, your knee takes all the load. I'd recommend adding specific exercises two or three times a week (squats, lunges, single-leg stability work) and doing a longer warm-up before you play, like 15 - 20 minutes with dynamic movements, not just the typical static stretches.
Are you wearing soccer cleats with good support, or are you just using whatever sports shoes you have at home?
What others are saying about strengthening is right, but there's something a lot of people overlook: your knee suffers a lot if you don't have stability in your ankle and foot. I've seen people who train their legs but neglect proprioception work, and then in a match any lateral movement or change of direction triggers pain. Plus, two matches a week without decent recovery in between is pretty demanding. If you go hard on Wednesday, by Saturday you're showing up with accumulated microinflammation.
Try adding balance exercises (like standing on one leg while touching the ground with the other, or with your eyes closed), work your adductors and abductors, and throw in some isometric quad strengthening. Warming up is good but make it dynamic: don't just stretch cold, walk, jog lightly, do hip rotations and moving stretches. And most importantly: check what shoes you're wearing, because bad ones can sabotage everything else even if everything else is fine.
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