It's coming up to 18 months since the release of the current Mercurial XIII but as we begin to creep towards 2021 it looks like Nike are close to releasing their next-generation of speed. Bruno Fernandes becomes the latest player to train in a blackout prototype as the Swoosh ramp up their testing phase.
The Mercurial line is one of such dynasty that every time a new generation comes out you wonder just how they propose to improve on the last. And yet Nike seem to do it time and again, revamping the silo with each iteration. And that looks to be the case again with this next-gen sneak peek.
The upper of Bruno's Vapor 14 looks to be once again reworked. The large outline of the Swoosh has moved, now taking up position along the side and up onto the forefoot. A smaller Swoosh then sits on the instep. What looks to be perforated dots appear on both sides of the mid foot reminiscent of the Air Zoom Mercurial revealed back in February, while there also appears to be a new, possibly external heel cup. All guess work at this stage, but certainly looks like the Vapor XIV and Superfly VIII will be more than just tweaked upgrades. We’d expect nothing less though.
We've already seen Inter Milan's Ivan Perisic wear the Superfly in pre-season and Jadon Sancho went one better by wearing them on international duty with England against Belgium earlier this month so we can expect a launch date isn't too far away. If it isn't this side of Christmas it won't be too far on the other side. For now though, Nike are keeping their cards close to their chest in terms of specifics.
Stay tuned for more on the next-generation Nike Mercurial...
