Global football star Cristiano Ronaldo with Nike launched the CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II boot. Inspired by Ronaldo’s lightning speed and effortless style off the pitch, the CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II combines high-performance innovation and heritage of the Nike Safari print.

Nike originally introduced the print on the Air Safari running shoe in 1987, and the unexpected aesthetic transformed performance footwear design. At the time, trailblazing Nike designer and father of the Air Jordan series Tinker Hatfield began exploring non-traditional materials, patterns and colors to use in athletic footwear and conceived the now legendary ostrich-skin print.

The limited-run Air Safari quickly sold out and gained an ardent following for its striking design. Now the iconic print is back — this time on the feet of one of the best players in the world. The updated print has a stylized look, wrapping the entire boot and laces for a bold effect. Ronaldo’s signature CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II represents the first time the print has been applied to performance football footwear.

“The Air Safari showed that you can create an athletic shoe that is beautiful and different without forgoing high-performance utility,” said Hatfield, VP of Creative Design at Nike. “It helped individuals make a personal style statement whether they wore it on a run or out at night.”

Built for speed

The game’s fastest player demands a boot that not only reflects his personal style but also delivers superb traction and responsiveness. The CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II features the unique NIKE SENSE adaptive traction system where designers created a pair of adaptive studs in the forefoot that can extend and retract by up to 3mm, based on ground conditions and pressure exerted by the player.

Directionally positioned blades maximize cutting and allow for quick changes of direction, while secondary toe traction provides added toe-off power for those first critical steps. The result is a boot that enables greater speed in all directions.

Nike Flywire, a lightweight composite that forms the upper, increases range of motion while locking the foot to the sole plate, ensuring maximum transfer of energy from the foot to the ground. The carbon composite chassis keeps the player close to the ground for improved stability and responsiveness.

“The CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II makes a statement on pitch and the Safari print expresses my style,” said Cristiano Ronaldo. “Combined with incredibly light and responsive performance the boot gives me everything I need to elevate my game.”

In another nod to speed, the boot’s arresting Safari print is overlaid with a tonal chevron pattern that is illuminated in certain light. Designed to appear as a flash in a player’s peripheral vision, the reflective graphic can improve player awareness on pitch.

The CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II also gives consumers exclusive access to training insights from top players and coaches through Nike Football+. Each pair of boots comes with a unique user code to unlock insider tips and Master Speed training content.

Cristiano Ronaldo debuted the CR Mercurial Vapor SuperFly II on pitch November 7 during “El Derbi” which featured Madrid’s premier football teams.

The special edition Mercurial “Safari” boot range will be available at Nike Mid Valley and major Al-Ikhsan stores from 15^th November onwards.

Nike Football+ can be accessed at www.nikefootball.com.my

NIKE MALAYSIA ANNOUNCES Mohammad Zaky B. Sulkifli AS THE CHANCE WINNER IN MALAYSIA

Top Talent Handpicked by Coach K Rajagobal to Trial with Arsene Wenger in London

Menaha Nadaraja, Mohammad Zaky, Coach K. Rajagobal

On 6th October, Nike Malaysia announced Mohammad Zaky B. Zulkifli as the winner of The Chance in Malaysia who will represent the country at the Global Trials in London next year. Playing under the watchful eyes of Arsenal FC manager, Arsene Wenger, Mohammad Zaky B. Zulkifli will join 99 other footballers from 40 countries with the hope of being one of the selected eight that join the Nike Academy, a high performance training program supported by the Premier League in England. The announcement was made at The Chance final camp held at Bukit Jalil and was attended by Kelly Sathiraj, Assistant General Secretary, Football Association of Malaysia and national team coach K Rajagobal.

“The Chance is a wonderful program that affords young footballers the opportunity to take their first step towards playing football in a professional level under the under expert guidance from coaches like Arsene Wenger. The Football Association of Malaysia congratulates Nike Malaysia on their efforts to develop and bring football to a level that is on par with the powerhouses of the game in this region,” said Kelly Sathiraj

Launched in September, The Chance in Malaysia saw more than 500 talented young players attending open trials in Kuala Lumpur, Kuantan, Penang and Pasir Gudang with national team coach K. Rajagobal and his panel of coaches having the arduous task of selecting the top 30 players to attend the final camp held on 5^th and 6^th October at Majlis Sukan Negara, Bukit Jalil.

“Throughout theses trials, we saw a lot of young talent within the Malaysian football community. The players were put through physical, mental and agility testing and we closely scrutinized them in these disciplines. The overwhelming response to the open trials showed that Malaysia is not short of football talent,” said coach K Rajagobal

“The program is certainly a boost for Malaysian football as it gives our young players the chance to prove their worth and possibly excel at the highest levels of participation. It brings out that drive and determination showing how badly the Malaysian youths wanted this chance,” he added.

The 30 selected players who attended the camp were put through physical and physiological tests by the experts from the National Sports Institute to assess their speed, stamina and mental endurance. Apart from this, the players also had to undergo football skills tests for the panel of coaches to evaluate their technical football abilities as a silo player and as part of a team. The tests were conducted with the aim of indentifying player with the right balance of physical and mental strength that will enable him to compete on a global level with his compatriots at the trials in London.

Staying true to their commitment to grassroots development of football, Nike Malaysia believes that The Chance is a recognizable platform for not just scouting youth potential, but also to develop the young football spirit in Malaysia and bring out the fullest of their capabilities.

“With the selection complete, we are proud to announce Mohammad Zaky as the Malaysian representative at the Global Trials where he will ply his trade with Arsene Wenger watching closely – this is the chance of a lifetime for any footballer and we believe that Mohammad Zaky will do the country proud. The Chance is a reinforcement of Nike’s ongoing efforts in developing and recognizing youth talent, whilst contributing to the football community in Malaysia” said Menaha Nadaraja, Country Market Manager for Nike Malaysia.

Mohammad Zaky B. Zulkifli, hailing from Johor, attended The Chance open trials in Pasir Gudang and was one of the eight players selected from the Southern region to attend the final camp.

“It has always been a dream for me to become a professional footballer and thanks to Nike I am now presented with this golden opportunity to take that first step towards achieving my goal,” The Chance winner Mohammad Zaky excitedly commented.

He also added, “I am truly grateful for this chance that Nike has awarded me with and I hope to write my future by qualifying to be one of the eight that is chosen for the Nike Academy”

As members of the Nike Academy, players become full- time participants at a residential training centre in England with access to elite coaches, nutritionists, psychologists and fitness conditioners in addition to the world class facilities to perform at the highest level

The eight who are chosen will have their expenses paid to live in the United Kingdom for a year starting in July 2011 and be enrolled as a full time member of the Nike Academy.

The Nike Academy offers non-contract players unattached to professional clubs a chance to enter the professional game through world-class coaching and games against the elite academies and professional reserve teams. Since the academy’s start in 2009, eight players in the UK have received professional contracts.

(Half-time at Stamford Bridge)

Right now, the first period is just over and I thought I’d use this time to type a little since I haven’t been updating this site for quite a while already. Not a good scoreline at the moment, 1-0 to Chelsea and it’s super frustrating…really, because in my honest opinion, I dare say we were the better team the entire first 45. Referee Mike Dean gave us some free-kick favours, yes, but the important one he missed out, the one which led to Drogba’s goal for a foul on Alex Song. Dammit!!!

There’s really nothing to talk about yet, except that Liverpool are now engaged in an embarrassing relegation battle and lucky Manure survived a scare to grab one point away to Sunderland yesterday, so those are at least some good news from this weekend. Well, our game is not finished and we still don’t know how the result will affect us in the league but I really do hope we can still muster a victory here at Stamford Bridge. Our first half performance tells me we deserve it. I’ll continue later…back to the match, let’s go Gunners!!!

(The next day…)

I guess you know now that we’ve lost 2-0 to Chelsea and even though we’ve lost ground and lie seven points behind the league leaders already, I don’t really feel critical of our team’s performance today. You may or may not be mad at the manager, the players, the referee or whoever it is you want to blame, but let’s get over it. It’s always hard to swallow defeat, especially to any of the other top clubs, but it’s easier to take in when your team has played their hearts out and poured out the effort and class the way our boys did. We were left to rue our missed chances but Chelsea will always play with confidence and maybe we were still a nervous team last night. That said, there are so many positives to take from our loss – Wilshere played the bulk of the match and he’s only 18, we dominated Chelsea at Stamford Bridge entirely only to not score, and we matched Chelsea’s quality if not better than them in every area of the pitch – and that is surely a good sign (mind you, I’m not gonna say the future) as we move along this season.

Yesterday, I was frustrated and a little disappointed at the final whistle, but it took me just seconds to realize I’m still and always will be a proud Arsenal fan. We can only go up from where we are now. Can’t say the same for Liverpool though…ouch!

p/s: Fabianski, in my opinion, did superbly…and I rarely give him credit for anything.

TSGB’s Man of the Match

Didier Drogba

It was an early kick-off at Ewood Park today, a match that saw Arsenal take home three very crucial points to sit atop the Premier League table with 3 games played. That position will surely change once the Chelsea – Stoke game is over (Chelscums 2-0 up at the moment), which makes the points we just collected all the more important to stay within touching distance with the current league leader and last season’s champions.

I kid you not when I say Blackburn  put up a great display, probably not in style of play but definitely in terms of discipline, fight and spirit. In what was a pretty okay first half which saw both teams evenly testing each other out and pressing for goals, it was the away side who drew first blood in the 20th minute. A link of passes between Song, Arshavin and Van Persie capped with a brilliant run by Walcott ended with a perfect finish by the Englishman scoring his fourth already this season with a goal that ripped the bottom end of the net. However, in the early minutes of  the game, Blackburn had some good chances, one particularly from a corner which was cleared off the line by Cesc Fabregas who started his first game of the season along with Robin Van Persie. And up till the point when Walcott scored, Blackburn continued to pressure the Arsenal defence while the Gunners at certain moments produced a few corners that came to no avail.

Arsenal came out a lot better in the second half, and in his post-match interview, Wenger said his players were “calmer”. They controlled more of the midfield, and held possession for better periods and largely frustrated a Blackburn side with their passing around of the ball. Even Fabregas and Arshavin who both arguably had a dismal first half were more involved and looked poised in attack, although you could see, they still didn’t play to full potential. It took Arsenal 7 minutes after the restart to get the winner, when a good cross by Sagna found Fabregas, whose shot was blocked and the rebound fell kindly for little Russian Arshavin to hammer home past the onrushing Robinson.

In the dying moments when Blackburn were determined to find an equaliser, Jack Wilshere had a chance to make it 3-1 but Robinson made a wonderful save to deny the youngster. Blackburn continued pressing forward and Arsenal soaked up the heavy pressure in ways that can only make a Gooner proud and nervous at the same time. Let’s just admit that our defence had been awful today, but the way they held up at the end definitely deserves some credit and the best outcome from that is that we managed the win.

Injury wise, we saw Van Persie hobbled off with an ankle problem (hopefully, not serious) and this time, it didn’t quite worry me as it did last season. Won’t you agree with me if I say RVP has this habit of getting injured early in the season and goes missing for long periods, but when he is on form, you can’t help but admire his brilliance on the pitch? Last season, when he was out, it took it’s toll on the entire team because we were having a flying start to the season and then all of a sudden, Wenger has no options upfront to lead the attack (no good ones, I mean). Walcott was around, but he wasn’t as sharp and mature as he is now, so to give him such a heavy responsibility would have been unfair and a terrible mistake. So, the manager resorted to Bendtner, who was fine, but made too many misses at times, and fans can only bear with so much. We watched our previous season crumble before our eyes and wished, begged even for Wenger to get us a better striker. Now, with Chamakh around and Walcott in scintillating form, RVP will not be missed too much and I won’t think it harsh to say the Dutchman is too fragile for my liking. I sure hope he’s not injured and he’s one of my favourite players because he really is an asset to the team, but thank goodness gracious Wenger had the sense to invest in Chamakh, a good stiker who has credibility and talent, even if he did not impress in today’s game.

After seeing Koscielny in his first two games for Arsenal, I still think he didn’t quite made the impression Vermaelen had when he first came. Our new CB still has to improve on some aspects like strength and confidence as it seems to me he’s a little off when he’s being closed down and needs to make a pass or in one-on-one duels with opponents compared to his partner. The way Diouf went pass him today showed that he lacks the skill to hold off another player, a quality which Song and Diaby demonstrates very well.

In a nutshell, it was not a great showing by our team today, neither was it lackluster so to return with full points after such a difficult game is always pleasing. I expect another tough game against Bolton next week and it’s the sort of game and tactical approach we may find tough to deal with. Let’s see what Wenger has up his sleeves for that. And for the second time in a row, for his goal and efforts which would make Capello punch himself so hard in the face, I announce…

TSGB’s Man of the Match

Theo Walcott

Holler it! Six-nil to the Arsenal!

Trust me, you will want to kick yourself hard if you’d missed the match earlier in which the Gunners gave such a brilliant performance at home that undoubtedly taught newly promoted side Blackpool a football lesson. In a match that was highly entertaining (for Arsenal fans at least), Arsenal dominated entirely and could even have, or rather, should have added more to the scoreline. I would say it was a darn good day for Arsenal – there wasn’t a teammate who played badly, we made minimal fouls and hence, collected zero cards, passed the juice out of Blackpool to create chances and scored plenty of glorious goals to compliment them. Added to the fact that I’m not exactly good at writing commentaries, I always believe a goal can never be perfectly described in words or carry the same impact as opposed to if you had actually seen the goal so here’s a link to a video of the highlights for you guys to enjoy. That said, I won’t be going through the goals one by one in this blogpost and I’ll be assessing on some of the players whom I thought played tremendously well and give my two cents on their performances this week instead.

Theo Walcott

I must be crazy if I didn’t mention him first. No. 14 played out a 10/10, skipped and sprinted past defenders, dribbled with speed and accuracy, but most importantly scored 3 goals. I mentioned that Arsenal have improved in my previous post and judging by Walcott’s final balls in this week’s game, there’s more to be happy about. His crosses into the box are way better than the best he’d produced last year, and he’s getting into the right positions at the right time, almost every time. As I watched the game, it seems that each time Walcott has a touch on the ball, Arsenal looked dangerous, like we’re ready to pounce on Blackpool’s defence and the Englishman is almost always in the thick of the action. Hat-trick hero, rightfully so. Now, scoot over, Didier.

Tomas Rosicky

Okay, if I’m being absolutely honest, throughout the entire game, I didn’t really miss Fabregas. That is not ridiculous, I mean, Rosicky was doing so well, wouldn’t you agree?  His diversity of passes, looking for players in wide areas so that we could utilise every acre of space there is, especially after Blackpool were down to 10 men. Definitely beats Nasri’s performance last week by a gazillion miles, which hardly had any significance to remember for.

Marouane Chamakh

Love this guy! Love him! Yup, he missed a total sitter but still, LOVE HIM!!! Try telling me you’re not impressed by his first two competitive games for Arsenal and I will argue you to death. Something tells me, Chamakh is what we’ve been missing in previous seasons – we didn’t have a striker that lingers around the penalty box then, we never had a tall striker to look for at set-pieces (strike out Adebayor, he’s too lazy to jump even a bit higher), we never had one that comes out of nowhere and creates a chance or a goal. Last week, he forced an own goal out of Reina and this time, he won us a penalty and scored a glorious header to claim his first ever Premier League goal. Plus, he’s always saying how Arsenal is his dream and how he wants to give everything for the club. That to me, is all I can ask for in an Arsenal player.

The Arsenal Defence

It wouldn’t be fair if we criticise our defence after the game today. Vermaelen and Song looked solid, Sagna controlled the right flank for a good 90 minutes and even made an assist in that time for Abou Diaby to score. Clichy had a good game as well, stole some balls from the opposition’s legs and contributed in attack as well. In goal, Almunia didn’t have much to do and luckily so, because I’m worried his game might be affected by news of Arsenal hunting for a new goalie. Even Wenger mentioned that the Spaniard is a little “unsettled” by those rumours and is considering his future seriously.

Having praised the boys for their effort against Blackpool, it goes without saying that the latter were unfortunate to have been reduced to 10 men, because on a day when Arsenal plays like this, they would have found it difficult to cope even with 13 men on their side. Nevertheless, the red card was a fair one, so was the penalty which Arshavin duly converted. Before I end, let me just emphasise my respect for the Blackpool players, for giving us a good football showing, not coming out to play dirty or stall the game and to their fans, who brightened up the stands in their orange shirts and a sporting attitude.

TSGB’s Man of the Match

Theo Walcott

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