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adidas X Speedflow .1 First Impressions: A balanced speed boot

Edit 7 July 2021: BOOTHYPE was lucky to get a pair of adidas X Speedflow.1 samples in hand from Tokyo Football. Here is our first impressions of it.

The adidas X Speedflow.1 now has a adidas X19.1 esque knit tongue, albeit one that is much thinner. The strip of plastic at the edge of the tongue that was found on the X Ghosted.1 has also been removed, making the boot much more comfortable. That plastic strip on the X Ghosted had a tendency to ‘cut’ into my foot when making quick pivots and turns and I’m glad to see it upgraded here.

The upper has also seen a minor evolution instead of a revolution. It’s ever so slightly thicker than the one found on the Ghosted.1, but also softer and less plasticky. It feels nicer on foot out of the box as it adapts to your foot shape quickly, making for a much more comfortable wear. It’s still very thin, as evidence by how you can see the light shining through the boots, but it’s not Ghosted.1 thin where you could see the colour of your socks permeating through the upper.

I’m happy to announce that adidas have kept that amazing Carbitex tooling which I really loved from the Ghosted.1. The change in the tooling involves the heel area which is now made of a mesh material similar to the tongue, which seems to catch and hold my heel in place much better. All in all, the X Speedflow.1 is definitely a much more refined version of the X Ghosted.1, improving it on almost all aspects, especially when it comes to comfort.

Below is the original article from May 2021

Leagues around Europe may be coming to an end, but the football action isn’t ending any time soon. Not only do we have the (delayed) Euro 2020 coming up next month, we’re also about a week away from the highly anticipated Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City.

For boot nerds around the world, this is an exciting period because adidas has developed a habit of launching new boots for their marquee players to display in the Champions League Final. We should expect the launch of the adidas X Speedflow .1 during this game.

Interestingly, the adidas X Speedflow .1 seems to share less similarities with the previous generation X Ghosted.1, but looks more of a direct successor to the X 19.1. Like the X 19.1, the tongue on the adidas X Speedflow .1 seems to also be made out of a mesh like material, which will go someways to keep you locked in without putting too much pressure on your foot the way the the Ghosted.1’s synthetic tongue did. That heel tab is also made out of a knitted material, which I’d expect will make the boot a much more comfortable one.

The upper also looks much less translucent as compared to X Ghosted.1, with what looks like a slightly thicker upper made from a fused layer of mesh and synthetic. Thankfully, the awesome Carbitex tooling from the X Ghosted .1 has been carried onto the new generation.

We also got a peek at what looks to be an upcoming colourway inspired by the 2013 red adizero Messi signature colourway, possibly to be worn by the man himself in the upcoming Copa America tournament. We can’t wait.

Images provided by Volky Football boots.

Sneak Peek: Puma King Platinum SL 2

Following up from our previous peek at the upcoming Puma King Platinum Japan, we’ve received updates that the Puma King Platinum silo will indeed have a pretty comprehensive makeover, going from a more minimal and thin upper, to a more padded one. Today, we bring you what we’ve been reliably informed as the Puma King Platinum SL – a synthetic variant of the upcoming Puma King Platinum SL 2.

Swipe the images below to view the boot.

While our previous peek featured a Japan-only hard ground tooling, today’s photos gives us a good look at the revamped Puma King tooling for firm ground. Similar to the Puma One tooling used previously, the new King primarily uses conical studs. It is reminiscent of the old Puma EVOPower from 2014, with a stiffened spine, as well as what looks like a more flexible forefoot which, according to Puma in 2014, allowed for better downward flexing that helps produce a harder strike by allowing your foot to tip downwards when striking.

Upper wise, the Puma King Platinum SL 2 remains largely similar to our previous peek, with a more padded and comfortable looking upper, albeit adorned by synthetic instead of leather.

Would you wear this pair of boots when it launches? Let us know in the comment section below.

Photos provided by Tokyo Football.

Nike Tiempo Legend 9 leaked

The Nike Tiempo Legend 9 looks hella sleek.

Sneak Peek: Manchester United Home Kit 21/22

By now, it’s quite clear that, while beyond the influence of the designers, sponsor logos have quite a bit of impact on football kits. Take Manchester United for example. When the club switched its sponsor to Chevrolet, many fans were understandably upset, as the orange on the logo didn’t always blend well into the jerseys.

With the Red Devils switching sponsors again to TeamViewer, we were left wondering how the sponsor logo would complement or affect the design of the upcoming jerseys.

The good news: As the new logo is predominantly white, it blends in reasonably well with the jersey.

The bad news: the new United home kit is underwhelming to say the least.

manchester united 2021-22 home kit football jersey

The kit seems to take some inspiration from its 2015/2016 counterpart, which had a predominantly plain red design, complemented by white trimmings around the collar, sleeves as well as a modern looking v-neck. While the 2021/2022 kit also has those white trimmings, the elements just don’t come together as well as they did on the 2015 version, and ends off looking more like a generic lower league club kit, as compared to a kit for the forth most valuable club in the world.

Having said that, adidas seems to have kept its more unique and imaginative kits for the club’s away and 3rd kits, especially with that love-it-or-hate-it Zebra design from last season. Here’s hoping the Manchester United away and 3rd kits give us something to write home about instead.

Sneak Peek: Inter Milan Home and Away Kit 21/22

Update: We’re received photos of the upcoming Inter Milan Away kit 21/22 and have updated the article accordingly to include it below.

Now I’ve given Nike a bit of grief for their jersey designs so far, but I have to say, the brand from Oregon has absolutely knocked it out of the park for this one.

As the fashion capital of Italy, Inter Milan’s kits have tended to weigh more heavily on the stunning side of the scale (pun intended), even with their more outrageous designs.

Featuring a gorgeous snake skin design typically associated with luxury bags, and combined with black and gold accents, the Inter 21/22 is an early contender for jersey of the season. The snake motif takes inspiration from the Biscione, a historic symbol of the city of Milan.

Nike has always been adept at weaving in the Pirelli logo into the kit, but unfortunately, with Inter’s longstanding partnership with Pirelli having come to an end, it’ll be interesting to see how the new sponsor logo ties into this new kit.

Continuing on with the snake theme, the away kit takes inspiration from the club’s 2010/2011 away kit, which also featured an eye catching snake pattern, albeit on the side instead of slithering all over the kit.

inter milan 2021-22 away kit football jersey

I have to say that I’m less of a fan of this, which does give me throwbacks to my childhood days of playing Snake on my Nokia phones, and trying to maneuver my “snake” around the screen without bumping into itself. I do like the blue trimmings on the collar and the sleeve which gives a nice contrast to the white base, as compared to the 2010/2011 away kit which had a predominantly white look throughout.

Will the Serie A feel the sting of Antonio Conte’s Simone Inzaghi’s Inter Milan team in the upcoming season? Quite possibly so. I can only imagine them winning in style with this home kit.

For more previews on kits for the upcoming 2021/22 season, we’ve got you covered over the next weeks in our Football Kits section on BOOTHYPE.com.

adidas PredCopX Review: The true heir to the Predator line

adidas PredCopX football boots soccer cleats
9
out of 10
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The adidas PredCopX is a real Predator successor.

adidas PredCopX football boots soccer cleats
adidas PredCopX Review: The true heir to the Predator line
Who is this for?
The Predator fan that wants the most Predator-like boot on the market today.
The Good
Soft K-leather forefoot
Demonskin 2.0 grip
Excellent heel lockdown
The Bad
Fits tight out of the box
9
out of 10
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Christian Eriksen got me thinking about my mortality

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Christian Eriksen’s shocking cardiac arrest has got me thinking differently about my own journey with football.

Sneak Peek: Puma King Platinum (Japan?)

If you’ve followed us for some time, you’d know by now that Japan has got quite an interesting range of boots. Thanks to a unique arrangement that some of these Japanese manufacturers have with international brands such as Umbro, Hummel and Puma, these brands are able to make football boot models exclusively for Japan.

Interestingly though, Puma was one of the few international brands that had their own line of boots within Japan, that were literally made in Japan. While this line seems to have been phased out, the Made in Japan Puma One J1 HG was an impressive looking modern leather boot.

Today’s sneak preview features another Puma leather boot, which we previously thought was potentially a new Puma King Platinum at first.

However, after closer inspection, our money is on this being the successor to the Puma One J1 HG, albeit with a likely rebrand to the Puma King name instead. The biggest clue to this is the tooling, which looks more reminiscent to a HG stud layout, with a 10×4 layout. The upper also looks significantly more padded than the thin and lightweight Puma King Platinum with what looks like “cushioning pods” to help enhance control.

What I liked is that the new tongue looks to be made out of a fairly premium knit material. As someone who’s consistently rated Puma’s knit collars and tongue as one of the best in the industry, I see this as a good thing for the boot, and likely will add to the overall comfort level.

Having said all that, there is the possibility that this could be the new Puma King Platinum, and we’re looking at the the HG (hard ground) variant here.

Would you be wear this pair of boots if it came in the Puma King Platinum tooling? Let us know in the comment section below.

Photos provided by Tokyo Football.

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ASICS DS Light X-Fly 4 Review: The smallest details help it soar

8.5
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The smallest details make the biggest difference.

Who is this for?
For players who want an affordable, lightweight leather speed boot.
The Good
Superb heel lockdown
Premium and comfortable insole
Nice barefoot touch
Stable outsole
Lightweight
Affordable
The Bad
May not be as grippy on softer FG
8.5
out of 10
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