With the understanding that this could possibly be Lionel Messi’s final World Cup and international tournament, there has been a lot of focus on his play in Qatar. We could be seeing the end of what has been an illustrious international career with Argentina, but Messi is definitely not going out without showing why he will be considered one of the greatest to ever play the game!
Heading into the quarter finals, Messi has 3 goals, the best expected goals (xG) number of 2.79, most shots on target with 10, second highest chances created with 13 and he is sixth in most progressive carries with 57. It is safe to say he has had an extremely positive influence on the tournament to date!
A few weeks before the tournament started, he was treated to a new pair of signature boots. Looking at some of the pictures, I can say with confidence that he has been wearing the very same pair every game. They are the special edition X Speedportal “Leyenda”, limited pairs were released and have already sold out. The design is inspired by the adidas F30 boots that he wore at the 2006 World Cup. They feature a stretchy PRIMEKNIT collar for adaptive support, ultralight comfort and ease of entry. They are also made with a series of recycled materials, the upper features at least 50% recycled content. Underfoot they feature a Speedframe outsole, lightweight and flexible, the Speedframe outsole is designed for effortless acceleration – perfect for Messi’s style of play.
I personally think that adidas did a superb job with the colors on Messi’s special edition World Cup boots, they match up perfectly with the Argentina kit (right down to the gold on the socks) and give him that š look. While most other players are wearing the World Cup version in the Clear Aqua colorway, Messi is able to create a little extra magic in his signature Golden slippers.
Even those they are now unavailable – with a $300+ price tag they sold out in the first few days of release – the X Speedportal silo has proven to be an extremely successful boot in terms of performance. It sits in third spot on the World Cup goal scoring charts, contributing 31 goals to date and highlighting its effectiveness for attacking players.
Find all the latest colorways available at SOCCER.com.