Ahead of the official reveal of the Predator 20+ Mutator football boots, adidas invited us along to Arsenal's Academy to experience the new boots for ourselves, and to travel back to the start of the Predator timeline to understand the innovative technology that has gone into the creation of the latest chapter.
Before we slipped into the new laceless design adidas walked us through their creative process of the Predator 20+ Mutator football boots, taking us back to the start of a project that began before the previous generation boot had even been released. While the Predator 19+ introduced players to the collared Predator, the Mutator edition marks the return of genuine Predator DNA, thanks to those 406 spikes on the upper to enhance ball spin and touch. But before we could lash some footballs about we listened in on adidas designers Ben Herath and Dean Lokes explaining the journey with some intriguing looking prototypes and inspiration boards.
The one thing that the Predator 20 Mutator delivers on first sight is a serious impression. It's a statement design that shocks, intrigues and lures you in with an aggressive aesthetic that looks every bit worthy of the Predator name. With the tech talk done we moved into the changing rooms to kit up in the boot for the first time, slipping into one of the most harnessed fits in football complete with that added weaponry of the Demonskin tech and ball spin spikes we were ready to do some serious damage to whatever was positioned 40 yards above and behind the goal.
At least we thought we were... until we stepped out of the Arsenal Academy doors and were greeted by man mountain Per Mertesacker holding a clipboard and a pair of size 14 Predator boots. The balls were safe for now. The former Gunners defender is Head of the Academy and he'd assembled a team of his coaches to put us through our paces in a series of drills laid out to test the new technologies that the Predator 20+ Mutator possesses: touch, passing, control, and shooting.
Nothing will test your first touch quite like a 6ft 5in World Cup winning German breathing down your neck shouting at you to not mess up. Which is probably why we're still chasing our first touch right now, but when it comes to shooting and Per had chilled out a bit we began to see what the Predator was all about. To put it quite simply, this is the return of the iconic Predator series; a boot that delivers that trademark spin and curl, a boot that you'll never get tired of shooting in. The Predator is back, the identity is back, and if you own a greenhouse behind Arsenal Academy's training ground we'll pay you back.
Shop the full adidas Predator 20+ Mutator football boots collection at prodirectsoccer.com
