As the new season approaches the transfer window is jarred open to let in a constant draught of speculation. Clubs aren't the only ones busy when it comes to signing new talent; brands are equally busy trying to bolster their squads with the most direct route to signing players being those who are free agents.
We've picked out a selection of players who ended the 2016/17 season without a brand and alerted potential suitors to their availability by blacking out their boots. It's the oldest trick in the book when it comes to securing a pay day from a brand, and each season we see more and more players adopt the tactic to bump their already inflated wages. Brands, make your move, these boys are all yours if the price and product are right.
Paolo Dybala - The man in demand. Paolo Dybala has been wearing blacked out Mercurial Superfly V boots since his contract with Nike expired in February. The Juventus forward put in a fine string of performances in black boots throughout his club's run to the Champions League Final and now brands will be circling to sign him up. Nike will undoubtably try to get him to renew with the Swoosh, but it's adidas in the driving seat as Dybala wore a blacked out version of the adidas X 17+ Purespeed most recently. Dybala would be a decent fit for either the X 17+ or the Nemeziz and adidas look set to snag him.
Samir Nasri - Samir Nasri will most likely be looking for a new club and new sponsor this summer as Manchester City's forgotten man spent most of last season at Sevilla wearing a blacked-out adidas X 16.1. Nasri was one of the lead players for New Balance when the American brand re-entered the football market but he's since slipped off their radar and is calling for the attention of brands by blacking out his boots.
Marco Verratti - Another headline player whose boot contract is still up for grabs is Marco Verratti. The PSG midfielder was installed as the face of the evoTOUCH by PUMA upon launch but began to black out his boots when his contract expired with the brand. During the final few months of the season Verratti switched into a blacked out Nike Hypervenom 3 boot indicating he could be close to joining the Swoosh. If the Italian does begin the season with Nike we'd guess the brand would push him towards the Tiempo or Magista silo.
Romelu Lukaku - Romelu Lukaku appears to be waiting for his next club before deciding what to do about his boot contract. The Everton striker has made no secret about his desire to move on this summer, and whichever club he does decide to join looks set to influence his boot choice. The big Belgian's deal with Nike expired towards the end of last season as Lukaku experimented with PUMA and adidas boots and he's seemingly waiting to match his boot sponsorship with that of the sponsor of his next club. A Chelsea x Nike combo looks more likely, ahead of a Man United x adidas deal.
Keita Baldé - Linked with a £30m summer move to the Premier League, Keita Balde is another player in high demand. The Lazio forward will no doubt have offers thrown at him from numerous brands if he does get that move to the most marketable league in the world, but even if he stays at Lazio it's likely that he'll still receive a generous deal. Balde has been wearing a blacked out edition of the Nike Hypervenom 3 since his contract with PUMA expired in April. Expect to see him in a new brand from pre-season if PUMA don't match his demands.
Carlos Sanchez - Still officially an Aston Villa player, Carlos Sanchez spent last season at Fiorentina wearing a blacked-out edition of the Nike Magista Obra II since his deal with the Swoosh ended in 2016. At 31 years-old Sanchez is holding out for another boot deal from a brand but time ain't on his side. Chances are he'll have to accept a low key deal or remain in the blackouts.
Stefano Okaka - April 2015 was the last time Stefano Okaka wore a standard issue Nike Tiempo colourway. The big striker left Sampdoria for Anderlecht in 2015 and has remained in blackout boots since. Okaka, now at Watford, may have believed that once he moved to the Premier League a boot deal would follow quickly, but that hasn't been the case. He's either playing hard ball in search of a more lucrative deal or the brand's aren't interested. Maybe he just likes colouring in his boots...
Marco Borriello - Another long term blackout man is Marco Boriello. The Italian journeyman has been in blacked out Nike Mercurial Superfly boots since 2015 and at 34 years-old looks set to finish his career in them unless he takes a basic contract in comparison to one he would have been on in his prime. On the flip side, Boriello may have had enough of all that business and is simply choosing the stealth mode.
