Nikesoccer

Peerless Pato

DonJulio — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:36:56 GMT

Games don't come much bigger. That's why they call it Europe's derby. If you can make the difference on this stage, you know you've got greatness flowing through your veins.

Over to you Pato.

As the Rossoneri went toe-to-toe with their old rivals in Spain last night, the red-hot Brazilian scored twice. A tap-in to take the lead. And a searing volley two minutes from time to seal the historic win.

Just 20 years old. And getting better every day.

Don't miss a single Make The Difference moment. Follow Nike Soccer on Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace. Discover more about Pato on his player page.

A Hero In Training

Gronamo — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 15:36:01 GMT

The preseason is all about putting in the work, training hard to get ready for the season, but still people were worried when Milan lost eight consecutive games in the process. But their Brazilian duo, who have promised to be the difference makers in offense this season, came through for their team right when it mattered most.

A tumultuous off season in which leaders left has energized and empowered wunderkind Pato, who in the process of taking the offensive reigns up top for Milan has helped revitalize his countryman, Ronaldinho. Both have been killing it this off season and appear set to carry Milan. It didn't take long for the duo's hard work to pay off. Just about 30 minutes.

Ronaldinho played a knifing ball out front of the charging Pato who quickly caught up and coolly slipped the ball into corner of the net; 1-0

Twenty minutes later, after Milan conceded a goal, the magical duo were back at it again, with Ronaldinho carving up the midfield again before the ball found Pato again in the middle of the box with a point-blank shot on goal. You can't stop that: 2-1.

It looks so easy, but don't mistake the hard earned skill for some Brazilian birthright. The amount of practice Pato puts in is the difference between heroes and the merely talented. The 20-year-old now has 29 goals in 63 games for Milan, and this season is set the make the biggest difference yet. Grabbing two goals in the first game is a nice start.

The Superfly: a hat-trick of innovations

gabejazzy — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 15:23:56 GMT

Look out defenders, Mercurial Superfly is coming. And it’s fast. The fastest boot in football is built on three key innovations.

Flywire technology provides the greatest stability from the lightest materials. Ultra-efficient dual density studs, give total traction at defence-beating speeds. And a revolutionary 7-layer carbon-fibre outsole mixes speed, strength and flexibility to help you get behind any back four.

The developers behind the Superfly overhauled every inch of its design to give Nike players the weapon they need to strike the killer blow come match day. And because our products always start with the player, it was input from the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Didier Drogba, Alexandre Pato and Theo Walcott that made the Superfly the boot it is today.

Press ‘Play’ to see it in all its turf-burning glory.

The Young and the Relentless

Gronamo — Tue, 25 Nov 2008 21:35:22 GMT

Youth and leadership. Two words that don’t normally go together. On rare occasions, however, you find an athlete who performs equally well on the field and in the clubhouse. Someone who scores when the world is watching and works just as hard when it isn’t. Someone whose age means less to teammates than the number of times he’s gone to battle, made the tackle and composed his squad with vision and tranquility.

For the young guns at Arsenal, that person is now 21-year-old Catalan midfielder Cesc Fabregas. When Arsenal suits up for Champions League today, he’ll be wearing the armband and trying to right a ship that’s momentarily lost its way. Is all lost at Cesc’s side? Not even close. They’ve got the talent to compete against the best in the world. If they regroup together, the second half of the season will outshine everything that went awry in the first.

While all the drama is in England these days, last weekend's action took place in Milan. After beating Juventus, Inter Milan is now three points clear of their cross-town rivals atop Serie A. Inter’s affair was tightly contested and very physical. Could have gone either way. The Rosseneri really should have made up more ground with a win after Pato leveled and Ronaldinho then whipped in an ill free-kick (BTW, who’s hotter, Rooney or Ronny?), but an unlucky handball in the box undid the comeback that should have been. With the Brazilian contingent heating up the AC unit, midwinter in Milan should be where it’s at.

And the U.S. National Team? They’ve got Italy in their future as well. News from South Africa has our American boys pitted against Brazil, Egypt and the former WC champions in Group B of the 2009 Confederations Cup. Tough draw, but it’s just about the best preparation possible for 2010, which they’ll be attending provided that they finish in the top three of the CONCACAF hexagonal.

Set-Pieces Set U.S. Apart

gabejazzy — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 02:50:30 GMT

The US MNT's 3-0 win over Poland was one of the best looking performances this team has ever put in, and that's not only because of the new away jerseys. In front of a raucous, sellout crowd, against a European Championship-caliber team, the U.S. dominated for nearly 90 minutes. Flat out.

This has probably been the best off-season US Soccer has ever put together.

‘Los and Gooch came up huge with powerfully headed goals off of two supremely well served Donovan set-pieces. In the midfield, Mike Bradley and Ricardo Clark were rock solid. Whenever Howard was tested, he made his saves look easy and rightfully earned himself another shutout.

Top to bottom, inch by inch, this was the type of performance that could crack Coach Bradley's determined look into a smile. Yes, it was just a friendly, but you better believe other international programs will take notice.

Here's an encouraging fact from du Nord found on USsoccer.com:

"Since last year and prior to the USA's first World Cup qualifier this summer (June 15), the U.S. will have faced four teams ranked in the top 10 in the world: Argentina, Brazil, Mexico and Spain. All together, the team will have played 23 games, competed in two major international tournaments, captured the Gold Cup title, and traveled to seven different countries. Not bad for World Cup qualifying preparation."

This has probably been the best off-season US Soccer has ever put together. Bring on England!

And, adding icing to the cake, it looks as though we might have one of our boys back in action sooner than expected.

Also, enjoying fine performances on this past international friendly date were Franck Rib�ry and Alexandre Pato, netting for France and Brazil in their respective victories.