We have dived into the far reaches of the SoccerBible Boot Vault once more to bring you a true piece of football history. A museum piece that reminds us just how far football boot design has come. SoccerBible can present an exclusive look at one of footballs long-lost gems – the Puma Menotti Star.
Ever since the days of Puma's first football boot – the PUMA Atom – the German brand have continually been the forefront of football boot development, whilst providing to some of the games biggest names. The Menotti Star is a true Puma Hall-Of-Famer! Take a look and share your thoughts online, on Twitter and on Facebook.
The Puma Menotti Star – named after Argentine football coach and former player Cesar Luis Menotti – is one of the best looking boots from footballs golden generation! The PUMA Menotti Star football boots were designed in celebration of Argentina's 1978 World Cup triumph. Led by Cesar Luis Menotti, ''the slim one'' managed Argentina to their first ever World Cup victory while writing his name in the history books.
There have only been a select handful of gold football boots to ever grace the game. Recent years have given us the Messi F50 adiZero Gold, Puma Italia Four Star v1.06 and Nike Vapor II Gold. But no golden boot can pre-date the PUMA Menotti Star! As the history books show, it was PUMA often leading the way in both performance and design, providing the first screw-in-stud, grip toe vamp and gold upper!
The PUMA Menotti Star football boots followed the traditional six screw-in stud configuration made famous by the Puma SUPER ATOM shortly after the company was founded. PUMA was the first company to manufacture and market screw-in stud boots. It was as early as 1951 when experienced players from a variety of leagues first trailed the revolutionary innovation created by Rudolf Dassler.
What's great about looking at a football boot this old, is that we can see the origins of boot design and how some concepts are still current in today's footwear. Basics of boot construction that are still utilised today, such as glueing the outsole to the upper, a quality leather being the benchmark for great ball touch and feel, a heel counter for support and central lacing system for a secure fit.
The PUMA Menotti would certainly have raised some eyebrows at a time when traditional black leather boots dominated the game. The commemorative colourway was another example of Puma's commitment to the game across all regions of the world. We wonder if Cesar Luis Menotti held on to his pair...
Stay tuned to the SoccerBible as we reveal even more soccer cleats from the Boot Vault, showcasing the best retro, classic and once forgotten boots and bringing them back to life! As always we'd love to hear your opinions by joining the conversations with the SoccerBible community online, on Twitter and on Facebook.