Arsenal’s record signing Nicolas Pepe was spotted training in a mystery pair of blacked out boots that look like the Furon 5.0, suggesting that the Ivory Coast international could possibly be set to sign a deal with New Balance.
With his pace and direct attacking play, Nicolas Pepe has already impressed in the Premier League following his club-record £72 million move to Arsenal this summer. Until this week he has been wearing the adidas Nemeziz 19+ on pitch, with the winger even sporting the limited edition Spider-Man-inspired Nemeziz 19+ x Marvel boots in the London derby, Arsenal’s last game before the international break. But it looks like as well as a new club, he could be on the hunt for a new boot supplier.
Pepe was not in action during this international break and was instead training at Arsenal’s training ground, and it was here that he was spotted wearing a blacked out boot that looks suspiciously like the New Balance Furon 5.0, minus the ’N’ branding on the medial side, although the Fantom Fit frame upper is hard to mistake, just compare it with the recently released 'Infinite Dark' Furon.
Currently Sadio Mané is New Balance’s main man in the Premier League, and adding Pepe would be a huge move for the brand as they look to stop attaching themselves to one leading player at a time. Again, he’s opted for the Furon over the Tekela, but as the brand's speed boot it makes sense, with Pepe sharing a lot of attributes with Mané, the main one being pace. The Ivorian isn't expected to switch into New Balance just yet, he'll likely remain in the Nemeziz on match days, but his training ground appearances could give further clues to his brand future.
Watch this space for more on Pepe’s boot situation as and when it happens…
