After training in them since mid-February, Liverpool midfielder Jordan Henderson turned a fair few heads this weekend as he turned out against Arsenal wearing the Nike CTR360 II – Loyal Blue / White / Orange instead of his customary Umbro Geometra.
Whilst we’d love to bring you another Clint Dempsey-esque medical explanation, or even a John Terry ‘boots-in-transit’ fiasco as reason for the England Under-21 star’s switch – the answer in Henderson’s case is far more simple.
According to an official statement from Umbro:
“Jordan’s contract with Umbro recently expired. We thank him for the support he gave our brand and wish him all the best in his playing career.”
A perfect example of Occam’s Razor in full effect!
The former Sunderland midfielder has been a long-time Umbro wearer, having forged his career at Umbro-sponsored Sunderland wearing the Speciali.
From there, the youngster’s versatility and creativity in the middle of the park earned him the chance to be poster-boy for Umbro’s newest silo – the control-centric Umbro Geometra – and also a part in the campaign behind the 2011 incarnation of the England Home Shirt.
Whilst it’s still unconfirmed whether Henderson has put pen-to-paper with Nike, a deal looks like it has been done – at least at an informal level – as Henderson’s CTR360 II’s feature bespoke embroidery and an Elite SG soleplate; features unavailable to the average consumer!
Do you think Nike are a good fit for Henderson? Or should he have stuck with Umbro?
Let us know in the comments!
Thanks to Paul Thomas, Elliott Callender and J Sanguanbanetti for emailing in their spots of Henderson in over the past few weeks!
i personally would’ve liked to see him stick with Umbro, if purely for the sake of breaking up the monotonous spotting of nike- and adidas-branded boots in the premier league
the only thing monotonous is umbro designsÂ
he probably borrowed a pair from Glen Johnson
Does not really matter.. Umbro is owned by Nike, so they use most of the same prodcution methods..Â