Offering up a glimpse at an upcoming colourway, Rubens Dias (not that one) has been spotted in a recent Atletico Mineiro training session wearing an as yet unreleased adidas Predator Edge.
Right, let’s get one thing straight from the off here: the guy we’re talking about is not the Manchester City defender. Rather, he’s a young Brazilian midfielder who plays for Atletico Mineiro. See, there’s an ’S’ on the end of his first name. So, Rubens, as he’s commonly known, has been spotted training in an as yet unreleased pair of adidas Predator Edge .1, showing off what is set to be a very colourful design that's likely to be part of the Three Stripes setup for the upcoming World Cup.
Why do we think that? Well, first off, timing. The World Cup is just around the corner, and most brands will likely be releasing special packs for the tournament, as has become customary. It would make sense for these boots to be getting a run out ahead of an official launch. Only question is whether they will be in use in club football ahead of the showpiece event, or whether they will be reserved specifically for it only. The fact Rubens has his hands on (or should we say feet in) a pair would suggest that it may well be the former scenario, and we will expect select players to be wearing these in the weeks leading up to Qatar.
The second reason that it’s likely to be from a World Cup pack is the colouring. White base with bright and bold accents is very reminiscent of the ‘Al Rihla’ official World Cup 2022 match ball. That would follow with what adidas did recently with the Champions League-inspired ‘Beyond Fast’ pack, which lifted its look from the UCL match ball from both the men’s and women’s competitions.
As for the boot itself, as we’ve already said and you’ve probably already noticed, it’s a colourful affair, with a white base allowing a spectrum of colours to play out across the upper and soleplate. There’s an interesting switch up in the placement of the Three Stripe branding, with it reaching across the forefoot, as opposed to being positioned on the side foot.
Interestingly, despite this definitely being the Predator Edge model, there looks to be something of a nod to the preceding Freak, with multicoloured hits of colour shaped and positioned to look like the rubber spikes from the DemonSkin that gave the Freak its unique look. Will have to see if and what the reasoning behind that design decision is.
Meanwhile, expect more official communication regarding these boots in the coming weeks.
Shop adidas Predator Edge boots at prodirectsoccer.com
