The desperation of Liverpool’s cause has been well documented of late, and rightly so. It seems that with every passing game they become more desperate to hang onto the coattails of the ‘top three’, and Monday night’s seemingly winnable home clash with Birmingham City seems to hold all of the same pressure for Rafa and his men.
It seems strange that in a season where the club’s top stars have failed to impress, it’s one of the lesser names who appears to be the standard bearer for Premier League and Champions League aspirations.
Many a football fan raised an eyebrow when Yossi Benayoun was snapped up from West Ham United, but he appears to be one of Benitez’s most accomplished signings in recent years, and Liverpool rely on the wily playmaker more now than at any time in the past.
His fleet of foot and trademark jinks around the penalty box come via and inbuilt flair and talent not dissimilar to that of Cruyff, but on the deck he certainly has a lot more assistance in boot terms than the Dutchman’s heavy leather soles of the 1970s.
Given his superb touch and control, it’s maybe slightly surprising to find the Israeli international in a pair of Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly football boots. Sure, it’s a lightweight boot that complements the livewire’s darts around and inside the penalty area, but for close control and decent purchase on the ball there are evidently better boots out there.
What the Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly football boots do have is a precision of passing and shooting that few boots can rival. With a centralised core, moulded boot and precision of toe-to-ball contact that few can come close to, the most talked about boot on the market has undoubtedly been a strong contributing factor to Benayoun’s resurgence in form of the past 18 months.
His Monday night midfield battle will see him come up against Birmingham City’s Barry Ferguson. A player who tried (and failed spectacularly) during his last visit south with Blackburn Rovers, the Scot seems more assured this time around under familiar gaffer Alex McLeish, who he was with at Rangers.
An old-fashioned midfield warrior, Ferguson’s need to get box-to-box is aided by the strapping and sturdy Umbro SX Valor II football boots. This was a cleat that performed well in last year’s Boot Wars, aided in no small part by some domineering performances from John Terry, but the second version of the brand hasn’t taken off in quite the way Umbro would have hoped, not aided by the £100 price-tag.
The Umbro SX Valor II football boots are designed for core protection, and Umbro make no secret of that fact. Kangaroo leather wraps around the foot and the impact control heal counter ensures that any large amounts of pressure from the ground are absorbed up into the boot rather than straight up the leg.
It’s a hard man’s boot for a hard man’s role, and provides us with a fascinating match-up in the centre of the park.
Ransacker Prediction: Benayoun, making his 100th league start (assuming he’s there from the off) is carrying the weight of midfield expectation from his fellow troops, but this is a play-off between craftsmanship and grit. Benayoun, with home advantage, should have the edge with his, Nike Mercurial Vapor Superfly football boots, but with the current Liverpool side, anything’s possible.
Other Recommended Reading
- BOOT WARS RESULT: Yossi Benayoun vs Barry Ferguson
- Boot Wars Result: Michael Carrick vs Stephen Ireland
- BOOT WARS RESULT: Simpson v Thomas
- BOOT WARS RESULT: Didier Drogba vs Glen Johnson
- Boot Wars Result: Agbonlahor vs Evra
About the author
James is an experienced football journalist who edits two leading Premier League club mags. He has worked for Sky Sports and is endlessly complaining about shin splints. And Mark Lawrenson. His favourite boot is the Adidas Predator Powerswerve. Although it's rumored that he once owned a pair of Nicks boots!
Read more from James Evans and subscribe with RSS .
