If the shoe fits - football boots

One of the best bits of football is the basic fact that it's eleven men v eleven, wearing the same kits, kicking a pig's bladder around (or something more synthetic, see previous blog...). The kits allow very little room for fashion, trends or cults. Sure, you can extend a sock over the knee, or lift the collar, but the team are bound by the whims of the relevant sportswear manufacturer.

But boots... The feet allow for an expression that an alice band or tattoo won't, something that budding Beckhams can imitate. Like most other equipment, technology has had a massive influence, but it's basically a shoe with bits of plastic sticking out the bottom.

In a recent Independent article concerning England v Spain, Gary Lineker reveals that he had recently signed a deal to wear Quasar boots (remember them?), and was due to wear them for the first time against Spain in 1987 - he scored four goals in that game, but bemoaned the weight of them as well as the fact the soles were hanging off at full time...

Guaranteed to score four v Spain - more likely own goals

Boots started off being worker-style efforts, leather lace up boots, toecaps and studs. Now they are more like slippers, moulded to the foot of the wearer, weighing just a few grammes, promoting the manufacturer and some other message. After all the furore of will-FIFA-won't-FIFA allow poppies, Theo Walcott's boots emblazoned them anyway.

Former Liverpool player Craig Johnston was instrumental in creating the Adidas Predator boots, a boot featuring all manners of rubber addition, to assist the ball move in wicked directions, with increased power and more control. Initially, they were the most controversial boot ever, and now? Par for the course, of course...

Miss Whiplash had a cracking left foot

Now boots are so colourful and advanced that it's almost abnormal to have simple black boots. 5-a-side pitches across the land are graced with wannabes and never-bes, all wearing pink, green and blue boots, but perhaps without the skills of the original owners.

Again this blog is in danger of harking back to the glory days of the 1980s, where centre forwards and centre backs wore the same boots, necessary in those days to lump the heavy balls into the net, but also for protection - the number of metatarsal injuries are almost certain to be linked to the featherlight boots of today.

There does seem to be one throwback footballer doing rather well, of sweeping side parting and blackened boots, anchoring the England midfield, not afraid to tackle or do the basics well. It's just a shame Scott Parker didn't participate in Movember as well...

Jimmy! We're off to Wimpy!

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