Only Real Footballers Know This Trick 💦

Growing up playing football, there was a boot trick only real players knew.... In the early 2010's, Cristiano Ronaldo soaked his soccer cleats in hot water before every match. Why? 🤔⚽ It all comes down to his signature shoe: The original Nike Mercurial Superfly. Despite being very expensive, these were some of the stiffest football boots ever released. For Ronaldo, this was a real problem. Unlike many pro footballers CR7 wears new shoes virtually every game, but if you did that with these it would destroy your feet almost immediately. The hot water trick looks strange, but it actually served a real tactical purpose... Step 1: Soak Mercurial in warm-hot water for 20 minutes before the match. This helped soften the upper from right out of the box. Step 2: Wear them immediately as they dry. This would actually mold the shoe to the shape of your foot, making them much more comfortable and essentially forgoing the (normally month-long) break-in period. For professionals like Ronaldo this trick was awesome, but for amateurs like myself it was not a good idea at ALL. I tried it growing up, and while it certainly made the Superfly more comfortable, it wound up ruining them pretty quickly, as hot water dissolves the glue that holds the shoe together. Thankfully, these days it's no longer necessary, as modern football boots are quite soft from right out of the box. Still, an incredibly interesting bit of football/Ronaldo boot history that often gets forgotten in the sport! #football #soccer #cr7 #ronaldo #footballboots #nikemercurial #footballculture