Superstitious Bolasie Cant wear custom boots for FA Cup final

 

The DR Congo winger will stick with what he knows when he returns to familiar surroundings for the tournament showdown against Manchester United on Saturday

Crystal Palace attacker Yannick Bolasie will turn down the chance to play in custom-made boots for the FA Cup final clash with Manchester United.

The Wembley-inspired boot design displays the short route from his mother's house - the place of his humble beginning - to the international stadium.

The DR Congo winger was seen practising in the boots ahead of the 2-1 semi-final victory over Watford but he discarded them in favour of his usual pair before kick-off.

And ahead of Saturday's meeting with Louis van Gaal's side, a repeat of the 1990 cup final, Bolasie admits it is unlikely he'll make use of the boots due to the magnitude of the fixture.

"I wore them in the warm-up," he said. "They weren't ready. Obviously it's a great boot that's been made for myself personally, but for superstition - I don't want to gamble.

"You want to make sure you're playing on that pitch at Wembley and you're on top form and wearing the boot that feels like a sock is the most important thing."
Bolasie, 26, is no stranger to Wembley having grown up close to the stadium and he went on to explain the features of the specially-made footwear.
"On one side of the boot it had the journey from my mum's house to Wembley," he said.

"The road map highlighted in blue and obviously you can see the green, and on the other side of the boot it had the Wembley arch, that I could see from my mum's bedroom, with a Palace flag on it, and just the Palace fans walking to Wembley stadium."
The Palace winger, typically utilised on the left-flank, scored five goals in 26 Premier League games in 2015-16 and headed in the opening goal of the game against Watford in the FA Cup semi-final.