Rangers forward Cyriel Dessers has been struggling to get a good boot deal, and according to Jan Vertonghen it’s a growing issue throughout football.
Het Nieuwsblad report words from the two Belgium-born players about the current situation with boot deals, which Vertonghen believes has changed since the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Despite scoring 22 goals for Philippe Clement’s side last season, the Rangers player is currently getting his boots free from Puma and Dessers isn’t being paid for that despite having contracts with others earlier in his career.
“I did get shoes sent to me by Puma in the past few months, but I don’t know how long that will last,” the Rangers player is quoted as saying.
“I have been in contact with a few other brands, but I earn a decent living, so I wouldn’t have a problem buying my own shoes. That also gives you a bit more freedom. I find that strange in a way: I feel like I’m at the top of my career, I play for a top club in Scotland, I play in the quarter finals of a European cup, I’m with the Nigerian team and yet I seem to have a hard time getting a good deal. And in the meantime I see that young guys who have yet to make their professional debut do have a contract. To be clear, I don’t lose any sleep over that, but sometimes I don’t quite understand the logic.”
Vertonghen believes that brands are simply seeing their bottom line and realising they’re not making enough money from sponsorships. That’s seen a string of players, like the Rangers man, struggle to get good deals whilst at the very top the contracts just get bigger and bigger.
Dressers had beter contracts earlier in his career, when arguably he was much lesser known.
The Rangers player explained how fun those deals were for him and his extended circle: “I didn’t earn a huge amount and I still used about ten pairs of shoes per season. When I really broke through at the end of the season, Nike and Adidas also came knocking and I signed my first contract with Nike. Then I didn’t just get shoes, but also a shopping budget. Then I was allowed to go to the big Nike store in Laakdal ten times per season. On top of that shopping budget, I also got serious discounts in the store. I always took a few friends with me who had a whole shopping list. Those were always really fun trips. After my contract with Nike, I had another one with Puma, but that ended this summer too.”
Philippe Clement started the 29-year-old in Rangers’ first Scottish Premiership match of the season at the weekend, a 0-0 draw against hearts.
Dessers has a contract at Ibrox lasting until the end of May 2027.
