Walter Zenga (New England Revolution)

The man they nicknamed Uomo Ragno (Spider-Man), was an ever present in the Inter Milan goal through the 1980’s, making no less than 328 appearances and appearing for his country 58 times.

Even more impressively, in Italia 90 set a record of keeping 5 consecutive clean sheets, totalling 518 minutes without conceding a goal, a record that still stands today.

He is now the manager of Serie A side Catania.

Richard Gough (Kansas City Wizards/San Jose Clash)

A no-nonsense centre half and one of Glasgow Rangers most successful ever players, winning 9 titles as part of the infamous ‘9 in a row’ team. Gough also amassed 61 appearances for the Scottish national side. His spell at Rangers was interrupted by a brief stint with Tottenham Hotspur, only to return to Rangers, becoming the first ever Scottish player to be sold for over £1,000,000.

He spent 2 years in the MLS with Kansas City Wizards and San Jose Cash, being named in the MLS XI of the Year whilst with the Wizards.

Lothar Matthaus (Metrostars)

Perhaps not just one of the greatest players in the history of the MLS, but in the history of soccer. Winning World Soccer Player of the Year, European Footballer of the year and Fifa World Player of the Year, Matthaus could play in defence or midfield, with a rocket right foot that earned him the status of Germany’s most capped player.

His managerial career, however, has not been as successful as his playing days, with short spells in Brazil, Austria and Serbia, and as of now in Israel as the manager of Maccabi Netanya.

Roberto Donadoni (Metrostars)

A vital key in AC Milan’s success through the 80s and 90s, when very few could argue against them being the best club side in the world (other than Barcelona’s dream team). Notorious for effortlessly running past players on the right flank, Donadoni collected 5 Serie A titles, 3 European Cups, 3 European Super Cups and 2 Intercontinental cups before moving on to the Metrostars, where he was named in the Best XI in the 1996 Season.

Now boss of the Italian national side, Italy are left with a mountain to climb in order to progress to the quarter finals after disastrous results against Holland and Romania.

Maurice ‘Mo’ Johnston (Kansas City Wizards)

Mo Johnston was a Scottish centre forward starting his career with Partick Thistle, and then spending a couple of seasons at Watford before his move to Celtic that would later earn him hatred across Glasgow.

Leaving Celtic for Nantes, vowing to never return to Scotland, Johnston reconsidered and done a U-Turn, claiming to sign for Celtic again at the end of the season. As the summer approached, Johnston changed his mind once more, this time signing for arch rivals Rangers. This infuriated Rangers fans as Johnston is an ex Celtic player and supporter, but worse still, he was Roman Catholic. Celtic fans turned on him, opting for the nickname of Judas, replacing his former moniker of MoJo, Rangers fans disliked him from the start.

Nevertheless, he scored 46 goals in 100 games, before moving back to England with Everton. This unsuccessful spell was followed by brief stints with Falkirk and Hearts, before joining the Kansas City Wizards, spending 5 seasons there.

Hw was more recently head coach of Metrostars, before being given his marching orders, taking over the helm of Toronto FC.

Mo Johnston’s last minute winner for Rangers vs Celtic, 1989

Denilson (FC Dallas)

At 21, Denilson became the most expensive player in the world when Spanish outfit Real Betis paid approximately $32,000,000 to Sao Paulo for his services. Renowned for his dazzling stepovers and skinning opponents on the left flank, he was regarded as one of the most promising players the game had seen.

Sadly, the promise he showed never really developed, mostly down to his selfish play by holding on the ball for too long, or as the UK would say, ‘ball-hogging’.

He only played 7 games for Dallas before returning to his native Brazil.

Carlos Valderrama (Tampa Bay Mutiny, Miami Fusion, Colorado Rapids)

Considered the greatest Colombian player of all time, his creativity and flare was only surpassed by his hair – a curly orange electrified afro. Elegant and intelligent with the ball at his feet, El Pibe (The Kid) never actually ran anywhere on the pitch, but with his level of skill, why bother? His status of legend was confirmed in 2006, when a 22 foot bronze statue of him was erected in his home town of Santa Marta. Brilliant.

Spending 6 years in the US, Valderrama still holds the record for the most assists.

Youri Djorkaeff (Metrostars)

Aptly nicknamed ‘Snake’, Djorkaeff was a cultivated attacking midfielder and formed a crucial partnership with Zinedine Zidane, resulting in France winning the 98 World Cup and Euro 2000.

Banging the goals in for Monaco, he spent one season at Paris St Germain before signing for Italian giants Inter Milan and Kaiserslautern, when somehow Bolton Wanderers persuaded him to sign.

He became Metrostars ‘MVP’ during his brief spell in the US, before an ankle injury forced him to retire.

Hristo Stoichkov (Chicago Fire, DC United)

Unpredictable and quite possibly insane, this tricky Bulgarian had everything: pace, mesmerizing dribbling and a devastating shot. Barcelona snapped him up from CSKA Sofia, where his temperament, passion and goal scoring record immortalized him as a Barcelona great.

He was also instrumental in Bulgaria’s unexpected run in the 94 World Cup, during which time they made it to the semi final, losing to Italy. Stoichkov also earned the Golden Boot, finishing joint-top with Russia’s Oleg Solenko.

David Beckham (LA Galaxy)

The man who needs no introduction, ‘Goldenballs’ is the most famous soccer player on the planet, who’s brand is more renowned than his free kicks and defence-splitting passes.

A style icon for every male in Britain whilst playing for Manchester Utd, Beckham’s commitments to his life away from soccer meant that his relationship with Sir Alex Ferguson was likely to deteriorate, as it did to the extent that Ferguson managed to kick a soccer boot at Beckham’s eye, requiring stitches.

Fast forward a couple of years, Beckham joins ‘Los Galacticos’, winning the Supercup in his first season. He had to wait until 2007 for a major honour though, when Real won the Primera league.

Whilst at Galaxy, his career has seen a couple of milestones, a 100th cap for the England national team, and a stunning 70 yard goal against Kansas City Wizards, almost mirroring his efforts for Man Utd against Wimbledon in 1996.

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In modern soccer, performance is a key factor for professionals. This performance depends not only on his mental and physical shape, but also on good footwear. An essential part of the footwear is the soccer cleat, also known as studs. The soccer shoes are specially equipped with cleats that prevent players from slipping and assist in rapid changes of direction.

There are different types of cleats for the different sports, such as rugby cleats, baseball cleats, soccer cleats, cleats for track, etc. Most sports played on grass or dirt require the use of cleats for athlete’s stability.

The difficulty to play soccer on different types of ground was recognized early on in the history of soccer. That meant that the sole of the soccer shoes needed to offer proper resistance or ground traction.

At first, metal tacks similar to those of engineers’ boots were used. These metal tacks could be dangerous and their use was forbidden by Rule 13 of the FIFA regulations for the safety of the players. Eventually leather soccer cleats (or studs) replaced these tacks.

Soccer cleats are made of different materials and can be fixed or removable. The most common are the plastic cleats. This is so because shoes with plastic soles are simpler to make and usually cheaper than any other. Rubber soccer cleats, though, are usually softer than the plastic ones.

Both plastic and rubber soccer cleats are usually fixed to the sole of the soccer shoe. There are also aluminum soccer cleats, which are usually removable. These soccer cleats can be entirely aluminum or plastic with aluminum tips. Recently new cleat systems were devised to help distribute pressure across the boot. Incorporation of new polymer materials further strengthened the sports shoe as well as providing lightweight footwear.

Each type of soccer cleat is indicated for a different type of ground. Soft grounds usually are more slippery so one generally uses higher aluminum cleats that penetrate more deeply to avoid slipping. For firm grounds the soccer cleats are a bit lower, therefore plastic cleats are indicated.

Soccer cleats made of rubber should be used on hard grounds, as they are better for impact. On harder grounds the soccer cleats need not penetrate too deeply, as the ground isn’t as slippery. The soccer cleats are usually higher on the heel and lower on the forefoot, as more weight is put on the heel.

Injuries related to the wrong use of the soccer cleats are quite common. These injuries are usually on the knees and ankles. The most common knee injuries caused by wrong choice of the cleats are those to the ligaments. With the use a high set of aluminum soccer cleats on firm or hard ground the injuries are most likely to occur. The ankle injuries are usually sprains. The wrong use soccer cleats can also cause blistering to the feet, giving them an uncomfortable feeling.

Many professional players still prefer the shoe with traditional soccer cleats arrangement, which provide no more protection to the player than the boots of yesteryear.

Changes to shoe design appear to be in response to demand from parents keen to reduce the number of injuries associated with the modern game. The use of the right soccer cleats according to the ground that the game is going to be played is a key factor to prevent blistering and injuries that can be serious.

Soccer players should set an example and use the right type of soccer cleats and also the manufacturers should instruct the client for the better use of the soccer cleats.

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