Nicklas Bendtner reveals the story behind becoming the first ever footballer to wear PINK boots and the superstar he pipped to the accolade… as he speaks on his love for trainers and his latest footwear collaboration
- Nicklas Bendtner has been very busy following his retirement in 2020
- The ex-Arsenal star has opened up about why he chose to wear pink boots
- Are Pep’s City the best the Premier League has ever seen? Listen to the It all starts podcast
Nicklas Bendtner is known for his love of designer sneakers. But among Arsenal fans, the Dane is perhaps even more famous for some of the iconic moments of brilliance he has created on the football pitch.
A memory that will live forever in the minds of Gunners supporters is his sensational 87th minute goal against Dynamo Kiev to secure Arsene Wenger’s side a place in the knockout stages of the tournament in November 2008 – especially in his iconic pink shoes. .
Although some praise Everton’s Alan Ball as the first player to wear white boots, it was here that Bendtner became the first footballer to wear a pair of pink boots.
He was known as a player who loved to break the mold, and now speaking about why he chose to don the bright pink Nike Mercurial Vapor Roasas, he admitted he wasn’t the only star who wanted a pair obtain. , noting that he had pipped a Bayern Munich and France legend to wear them first.
“I came up with the idea for Nike,” he told Mail Sport. ‘I was one of the biggest young talents in the world, so we signed a contract.
Nicklas Bendtner (center) talks about why he wore a pair of bright pink boots in 2008
The Danish striker scored an iconic goal against Dynamo Kiev in the bright pink boots that secured Arsenal a place in the Champions League knockouts in 2008
Bendtner told Nike that no one had worn pink shoes before and that he wanted to be the first
“I said no one has ever worn pink boots, is it possible for me to get a pair? Ultimately it came down to one player in three or four countries wearing them.
‘I wore them on Saturday and the rest came on Sunday. Ribery was one of them.’
Like many professional footballers who have played at the highest level, Bendtner struggled to adapt to life after hanging up his boots.
‘Without football I miss my teammates, being in the dressing room, walking onto the pitch, the banter, walking into the big stadiums.
He added: ‘You can’t find the adrenaline rush it gave you anywhere. Believe me, I’ve looked. I’m still looking – and I’ll never get it.’
Bendtner would make the move to North London in the early years of his career, after a short period in FC Copenhagen’s youth academy. He played for Arsenal for almost a decade before moving to Wolfsburg in 2014. The Dane subsequently played for Nottingham Forest and Rosenborg, before ending his career at FC Copenhagen.
“But I’m living a fantastic life at the moment, I’m constantly challenging myself,” he told Mail Sport. ‘I’ve been diving for three years now and I love it. My new thing is I want to climb Mount Everest within the next two years.
But Bendtner admitted it was difficult to find structure in his life after his playing career
“When I retired, things were unstructured, I was living a nice life but without purpose… I was bored and I hate living without purpose.”
The 36-year-old, who has scored 47 goals in 171 appearances for the Gunners, is now set to embark on a new venture that will see Arsenal’s cult hero team up with the designer shoe brand WRONG; perhaps a fitting move for the first footballer to ever wear pink boots.
The ex-Arsenal star will become the brand’s ambassador for the coming year and has helped ERRANT design a new line of sneakers.
But it seems Bendtner has long had a love for fashion, especially designer shoes. A quick scroll through the Danish icon’s Instagram feed will tell you everything you need to know about his love for trainers.
According to Bendtner, that passion stems from his childhood, when he couldn’t afford to buy a pair of sneakers.
The ex-Arsenal star admitted his passion for shoes stemmed from not being able to afford a good pair of trainers when he was younger
“I’m fortunate that I’m still in a position where I can pick and choose the work that I do,” he continued.
‘At the moment I’m doing a podcast, a sneaker collection and I’m going to do some TV work at the European Championships.
‘As a child we had no money, so I wore the same shoe for four or five years until it was completely destroyed. That’s what made me love shoes.”
Read more about Nicklas Bendtner’s collaboration with ERRANT at www.errant.dk/collections/errant-x-bendtner
