Marcos Acuña

River Plate defender Marcos Acuña caught the eye in recent training by stepping onto the pitch in an unusual boot setup. The Argentine international was spotted wearing two different generations of the Adidas Predator line simultaneously, lacing up the newer Predator 26 on his left foot and sticking with the previous-generation Predator 25 on his right foot.

While both cleats share a similar white, black, and red aesthetic, the technology beneath them differs significantly. The Predator 26 features a revised, lightweight textile mesh construction with updated grip elements and a restructured soleplate, contrasting with the HybridTouch 2.0 synthetic upper and tooling found on the Predator 25. Opting for different generations across each foot is often a sign of a player testing new tech, managing minor fit and comfort preferences, or dealing with foot sensitivity on his dominant striking foot.

Mismatched boots are relatively uncommon at the top level, and combining consecutive generations of the same silo is an especially rare boot spot. It remains to be seen whether Acuña will stick to this split setup in official matches or complete the full switch to the Predator 26 in the near future.