Soccer Cleats 101 Soccer Cleats News and Reviews
Every boot is marketed towards a specific type of player, and more specifically, a type of action. Companies market their boots towards player styles, and generally their players wear the boots intended for them. A great example is Cristiano Ronaldo and his explosive speed, wearing the Mercurial Vapor. But how do you tell if the players are wearing the right boot? How about taking a look at their stats and see if their top stats match up with the boots they wear?
Fifa is the hot football/soccer game out right now and their stats are quite realistic, so lets see how the boot choices match up with the stats. Basically this is just another way of examining boots by playing style but by using stats out of Fifa.
(Note: the stats come from Fifa and the player’s regular cards, not In Forms)
Arjen Robben (Adidas F50 Adizero) – The F50s were designed for speed and control while dribbling at high speeds, so you would expect a player to have high stats in dribbling and pace. Robben seems the perfect match for that profile because his top stats are 92 pace and 92 dribbling. I feel that is an accurate representation of his personality in real life and it definitely justifies his boot choice!
Sergio Aguero (Puma Evospeed 1.2) – Another boot designed towards dribbling and speed, the Evospeed 1.2s are Puma’s stake in the speed category. Aguero has been in decent form this season, and in form twice on Fifa. On Fifa his top two stats are (you guessed it) pace and shooting. Coming in with 88 pace and 90 dribbling, he seems like a great fit for Puma’s speed boot.
Xavi (Adidas Predator LZ) – With five lethal zones, the first Predator LZ was all about controlling the ball. The newest version has improved the zones and addressed any issues the past model had. But that doesn’t mean it’s not about control and passing. The “most prolific player” that wears this boot is Xavi, and those are his exact traits. It shows on Fifa, because he has a 92 passing and 86 dribbling. Definitely the right boot for him!
Andres Iniesta (Nike CTR360 Maestri) – Just like Xavi, Iniesta is about control and passing. And guess what? The boots he wears even has control (CTR) in the name! I mean, to pull the strings in midfield at Barcelona, you kind of have to have stats of 91 passing and 91 dribbling like Iniesta. He is confidently wearing the right boots, because everything about the Maestri, from the control pods to the dimpled sides is about control.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Nike Mercurial Vapor) – Although FIFA 14 does a great job of capturing accurate stats on performance, they unfortunately don’t rate personality. Because if they did, Ibrahimovic would be one of the highest rated. A headline maker both on and off the pitch, the Swedish international has a pace rating of 76. Perhaps the Hypervenom, a boot designed slightly more towards shooting than speed would be a better choice. Especially because his top stats are shooting and dribbling, at 89 and 88 respectively. But give Zlatan credit because he did give the Hypervenoms a short stint of play time.
Robin Van Persie (Adidas F50 Custom) – Just because a player is injured doesn’t mean he is also out on FIFA. Because RVP has been out due to injury, it is harder to tell what his boot preference currently is. He was last seen in a custom F50 with an older predator soleplate with bladed studs. That was after he switched from his trusty old Predator adiPowers, so there is definitely question marks surrounding his boot choice. Also adding to the mix is that his custom F50s will be out of style when he returns after the release of the samba pack F50. Van Persie’s stats are very similar to that of Ibra’s. He has 76 pace, 89 shooting, and a slightly lower 84 dribbling. His situation is also similar because they both are equipped with speed boots when perhaps boots of the power category are better suited for the strikers. In RVP’s case, it seems as he should stick with his former choice of boots, the adiPower, or move on to some of the newer predator models.
Radamel Falcao (Puma evoSPEED 1.2) – Falcao has been plying his trade in Ligue 1 recently as another wearer of the Puma evoSPEED. With stats of 78 pace, 86 shooting, and 81 dribbling, it’s tough to say whether he would be better in the power or speed category. Perhaps he should give the new evoPOWER some time, just because he seems to be a player geared more towards power than pace.
Franck Ribery (Nike Mercurial Vapor) – Without a doubt, the Mercurial Vapor has been dominated by Ronaldo and his speed and dribbling. But hot on his tails is another speedy dribbler, is a midfielder straight from Bayern Munich, Franck Ribery! Ribery is rated with 91 pace and 93 dribbling, almost identical to Ronaldo’s 93 pace and 91 dribbling. If you almost have the same stats as a poster boy for the vapor, it makes sense to wear it!
Cristiano Ronaldo (Nike Mercurial Vapor) – There is less to discuss on Ronaldo, as he is one of the most covered footballers along with his boot of choice- the Mercurial Vapor. Anyhow, he is considered by many to be the best player on Fifa even though he is not as high rated as his Argentine counterpart Lionel Messi. Arguably, the most important stats for a forward are shooting, dribbling, and pace and he is rated at 90, 91, and 93 so I can see the truth in that statement. Honestly can’t say much about his boot choice, as the Vapor is designed with him in mind.
Lionel Messi (Adidas F50 adiZero) – Again, we have one of the most prolific players that plays the game and his boot of choice being almost designed for him. Similar to Ronaldo, he excels as an attacker in Fifa. Messi has 92 pace, 96 dribbling, and 89 shooting, which pretty much sums up how amazing he is in both Fifa and in real life. And it’s hard to argue with anyone that’s on the cover of a video game!
What are your thoughts on boots by playing styles? Let us know in the comments below!
I accidentally changed El Shaarawy’s shoes, and he had a custom shoe. Now I can’t change it back. Is there a way to change this?