Watch your football boots boys!!!!

February 20th, 2006 | by: ShiLou |

Japan coach Zico is a legend when you talk about the beautiful game. Recently he was discussing his team’s football boots after the friendly game against the USA. I found his comments below very hilarious even though the man himself was dead serious about the matter.

“Last week we were beaten by the United States in San Francisco and such defeat made me wonder. Our first half was very poor, and the reaction in the last forty five minutes reduced the negative impact of the match. No big deal so far: another lesson to learn and losing is part of the game. What bothered me, in fact, was in the feet of the players and that’s something I cannot accept…

We are in a World Cup year and our eyes must remain open. At the Confederations Cup, I alerted the squad about the possibility of skidding in the pitch grass – what happened during the first minutes against Mexico. This drama happened again against the United States.

In addition of facing a superior opponent, the Japanese players passed the whole match falling because of inappropriate shoes. At the end of the game, I took the goalie’s shoes – the only which was appropriate and did not skid – and told the group to take a good look at them. I told them that the shoes for that match should have six brakes: two in the front, two in the middle and two in the back. I mentioned the match against Mexico and made clear that such thing cannot happen with a team which wishes to make a good World Cup.

I know that it is a technical subject and that many of you have never put a football shoe, but imagine skiing with a pair of snickers or playing tennis with high heels. Obviously, it wouldn’t work – the sports material is crucial for the athlete’s performance. And with today’s technology applied to football, it is not acceptable to have players skidding because of their shoes.

The foot are our support and when we are not using the appropriate material, we lose the balance and, without balance, it is impossible to play football. It impairs the speed, the kicking and even the self-confidence. I notice that sports material companies have a special concern with the visual appeal, and I want to believe that such focus on marketing does not harm the product itself. I have already talked with Adidas and I intend to talk with other manufacturers because I don’t want to lose a decisive match due to a problem like this. I don’t want to interfere in commercial interests, but it is an issue that all football professionals must face as crucial.

And with the technology that we have today, the athletes must have two, three or even four pairs of football shoes for different types of pitches. So, they can choose the most suitable one in the day before the match.

The lesson is that the football shoe is the athlete’s work tool, as the hammer is for the construction worker or the brush is for the painter. The football shoe is a serious issue and we must remain alert, as any tiny detail may lead to glory or deception in the World Cup…”

It just shows that in the modern football game, you have to have the right tools for the job.

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http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2006/red-and-yellow-cards-of-the-world-cup-week-2.html World Cup 2006 – World Cup 2006 – Germany » Blog Archive » Red and Yellow Cards of the World Cup Week

[...] Red card to bad odors. Now that the Ecuador line of perfume is available there’s no excuse for not smelling like freshly cut grass in April. Red card to Japan’s Boots. You would think the country could afford some quality shoes for its players or simply have its teams play with no boots at all. [...]
http://www.viuasfotos.com/euler.htm Euler

I agree that it is hilarious, but Zico isn\\\’t the funny part of it. He must be serious since he is a very competent coach. The laughing matter is on the Japanese players… how can they not know the importance of their tools?