So are there any conclusions?

It seemed that the most common boot used by defenders were power boots, while midfielders preferred touch or heritage boots. The greatest percentage of wingers use speed boots. Forwards used almost anything, however the touch or heritage boot was the least used.

It is always interesting to see what happens when a new boot is released. Do all the players automatically move across to the new boot or do some prefer old faithful?
The release of Nike’s CTR360 has seen many players move from the boots they were wearing.
The Adidas Predator hasn’t had such an instant impact. They did only make their debut last week however so we wait to see what will happen there.

So you know what you are. And now you know what kind of boot you should be wearing… but which brand? Which boot in particular would be best?

Power boots:

The three main contenders are the Nike T90 Laser II, Adidas Predator X and the Puma v-Konstrukt III. The v-Konstrikt has the smallest market share while the Laser has the biggest. Seeing that the Predator X is still so new it’s difficult to judge just how good it is going to be.
The winner: Nike T90 Laser II.

Speed boots:

There is a huge Nike MercurialVapor V fan club. I personally would recommend the Adidas F50i Tunits: light, strong, changeable. Puma have a good shout with the new V1.10 boots which look very good and catch the eye in their bright yellow – which is the point. Wingers are flashy, exciting, eye catchers – the Puma’s are all of those too. You can’t deny how light the Vapors feel but the best all round performer for me is the F50i.
The winner: Adidas F50i.

Touch and Heritage boots:

Nike Air Legend II’s are just that – legendary, as are the Puma King XL boots. Both are beautifully made leather boots with a brilliant touch. The Adidas AdiPure II’s are also strong contenders. All three are top, top boots. I lean towards King’s, however the advantage of a little extra technology in the AdiPure’s make it a tough call. In the end what you are looking for is a strong boot with a good touch and the AdiPure’s deliver.
The winner: Adidas AdiPure II.

In the end it is all up to how they feel on your foot. Yes, you are looking for certain qualities in the specific boots but at the end of the day no boot can make you a better player. A comfortable boot that sits well on your feet without distracting you is what you are after. They say children should be seen and not heard. Boots should be worn and not felt.

There are many different styles of strikers and forwards. Rooney, Defoe, Crouch, Cole, Drogba… they all have different strengths and weaknesses. I don’t think there is such a thing as a perfect striker. You need a poacher, someone who can provide space and deft touches and a powerful, pacy front man.

So which boots do all these guys use? Well once again they haven’t made it easy to pick.

Manchester United’s front pair, Rooney and Berbatov both wear power boots – T90’s and Predators respectively.

Chelsea’s Drogba (in Vapours) and Anelka (in V1.10s) sport speed boots.

Arsenal mix it up with van Persie in Predators and both Eduardo and Bendtner in Vapours.

Of the four strikers that Spurs boast, three wear speed boots, while Robbie Keane wears T90 power boots.

So far the main absentees are the ‘touch’ or ‘heritage’ boots. Karim Benzema used to wear AdiPures but has switched to the newly released Predator X. Carlos Tevez wears Nike Tiempos as does Aston Villa’s Heskey and West Ham’s Carlton Cole.

Once again it does seem that any boot will do. The biggest issue is not which boots you wear, but what your style of play is.

Do you call yourself Torres? Or Rooney? You would best fit into Power boots.

Is Drogba your role model? Defoe your hero? Perhaps a pair of speed boots would suit you best.

If you are a hard working team player like Tevez and Heskey – touch/heritage boots are calling your name.

For something a little different why not try a pair of Umbro Speciali boots. Umbro only have about a 6% share in the Premier League boot market but so far have 14 goals to their name. Mainly thanks to Sunderland’s David Bent. Although Michael Owen has helped a little too.

Wingers are there to give a team width, attacking edge and a bit of flair. Most often they are fast, tricky and good crossers of the ball.
Ronaldo, Lennon and Ribery spring to mind.

If we take a look at Manchester United, we notice that all of their wingers wear different boots. We have Nani in Nike Vapours, Valencia in Adidas Predators and Park can be seen in Nike Tiempo Legends.

For the most part wingers wear speed boots. Again, Ronaldo, Lennon, Ribery and Nani are good examples – they all wear Nike Vapours. Then you have the likes of Ashley Young and Arjen Robben who wear the new Adidas F50i’s.

Interestingly, one of the greatest wingers of all time: David Beckham, does not wear speed boots. Beckham is the face of Adidas Predators and has pretty much been wearing them since he began. The new United right winger, Antonio Valencia also sports these power boots.

You can find the likes of Bastian Schweinsteiger, the German winger wearing Adidas AdiPure – a touch boot. Park Ji Sung and Joe Cole also wear Nike’s touch boot – the Tiempo Legends. Another Chelsea boy, Florent Malouda has recently opted to wear the new Nike CTR360 boot – which is an interesting choice.

All in all, it again appears that there is no rule. Two pairs of boots that don’t seem to be worn at all however are Puma’s V-Konstrukt and Nike’s T90 Laser, both of which are power boots. Most wingers, it seems will go for speed or touch.

Another two pairs which haven’t been mentioned (mainly due to the lack of players who wear them) are Reebok and Puma’s version of the speed boot: The Instante Pro and V1.10 respectively. Ryan Giggs, another wing legend, is using his Reeboks to great effect and playing some of the best football of his life. One of Puma’s most recognizable wingers is David Bentley but he can’t seem to get off the bench.

My advice: If you are a fast, tricky winger – a Lennon type – your best bet is a speed boot. If you tend more towards beating one and then whipping in a cross, a Beckham style Predator boot is a good bet.

The midfield is so often called the ‘engine room’ of a team. I believe there are three types/styles of midfielder; defensive, central and attacking. Here are a couple of examples of each:

Defensive (CDM): Hargreaves, Palacios, Mascherano – hard tackling, ball winners.

Central (CM): Carrick, Alonso, Jenas – silky smooth, brilliant passers.

Attacking (CAM): Lampard, Gerrard, Fabregas – creative game runners.

Each type/style have their own traits.

CDM’s will be looking to dominate the area just in front of the back four. Sliding into tackles and clearing the area of danger, they work hard to stop any advance from the opposition’s play makers and attackers. Sounds to me like a job for a pair of power boots. All three of the examples I gave have been known to wear the Nike power boot, the T90 Laser.

CM’s are not scared to put in a solid tackle. They are not shy of sticking one in the back of the net either. Their greatest strength however is their passing ability. They control the play, build from the back, arrange the attack, slow down the play and push up the tempo. They very often run the show – but from behind the curtain. What they need most is a good touch. Hence all three of my examples have chosen touch boots – albeit from three different brands.

Everyone wants to be a CAM: charge late into the box, exchange deft little one-two passes, slip one past the keeper – it’s the life! Lampard uses the Adidas AdiPure touch boots, Gerrard is an avid Predator user. Touch or power? Both are useful and needed. Perhaps Fabregas has it right. The all new Nike CTR360 is labeled an “all round” boot. The best of both worlds? Perhaps Nike have created the ultimate midfielder’s boot? We will have to wait and see…

For something different why not try Under Armour’s Dominate Pro boot.

Read part 1 here:

Well I haven’t discovered a pattern. What I did remember however was a pair of boots I saw a while back.

The Uhlsport Kickschuh Torkralle (what a name!) was designed with keepers in mind. What separates them from the pack are the “teeth” on the toe of the boot designed to give you the best grip possible.

Not the prettiest boot in the world… but then again you are there to stop goals being scored and not win the fancy dress award…

First off, what traits do good defenders need? Well, it must be said that there are at least three different kinds of defenders. I will use Manchester United to illustrate this point (partly because they went so long without conceding last year, so they must be decent).

I believe a good centre pairing needs two types of defenders; a destroyer and a styler.

United have a very good “destroyer” in Vidic. This kind will break you in half and laugh about it as they walk away. Fearless warriors really. Think the likes of Terry, Cannavaro, Carragher… the list goes on.

Once you’ve won the ball you need to play it out and counter attack. That’s where a “styler” comes in. In this case it’s Ferdinand. Others in this mold are Carvalho, Agger, etc.

Add to that two fast (very important) and attack minded full backs and you have a potent back four.

United can field a back four with boots from Nike, Puma and Adidas. The most common one however would be the Nike Laser – a ‘power’ boot. Vidic wears Puma’s v-Konstrukt – also a power boot. Another boot used often is the Predator which is Adidas’ power boot. Now Gallas would go and use Vapors which are speed boots… but I did say this isn’t a science.

A picture of United’s first choice back four looks like this.

My deduction: If you are defender you should probably be looking at power boots.

For something different maybe have a look at the new Concave PT+ boots.

This is the start of a new four week series that will take a look at which boots you should wear for the position you play.

As way of introduction however, it must be said that this isn’t an exact science by any means! There are always exceptions to the rules (in fact there aren’t actually any rules to be an exception to).

Divided into four parts, we will look at defenders, midfielders, wingers and forwards/strikers.

We will single out different teams and the boots their respective players wear.

The point is to help the school kid, the new player, the old man “getting back into it”, who are looking to buy a new pair of boots and have no idea where to start.

Well, start here…

The first post “I am a defender” later today.

If you are wondering which boots you should wear as a keeper… the answer is the ones that you like best. There doesn’t seem to be any kind of pattern there!