Nike Tiempo Legend 8 Elite FG Review

Look and Feel of the Nike Tiempo Legend 8

From the offset, the Tiempo Legend offers a wild upper texture that gives the boot an unmistakable appearance. With the Tiempo Legend 8, Nike went with a supple, premium K-leather that's synonymous with their legendary Tiempo-Esque fashion as expected. However, the Tiempo Legends eliminates the classic leather touch of its predecessor. Fortunately, that eliminates its predecessor's problems.

Wearing the Tiempo Legend 8 shows you how Nike is killing it with their newest technology. Unlike the Tiempo 7, which was a bit of a hit and miss, Nike has eliminated the FlyKnit tongue and replaced it with a FlyKnit tunnel. The FlyKnit tunnel makes you feel like they are made just for your foot, even before you finish lacing up.

The FlyKnit gives you a nice and soft feel with a little bit of stretch. It's also among the few boots with a Flyknit that's not coated altered or coated in something to make it feel, unlike a knitted material, helping the whole boot to come together and work.

While running, the Tiempo Legend 8 combines everything to deliver an incredible feel while pacing to deliver a pass. While most players expected the boot to showcase its thin Kangaroo leather at maximum performance, it seems like Nike threw in too many ingredients with this one.

The Tiempo Legend also has two materials between you and the leather, but it doesn't hinder or affect your feel on the ball. However, it's not the feeling that most players anticipate with a kangaroo leather boot like the Tiempo.

Considering that the leather softens while playing, you will get the same feeling you got off the box thanks to its quality interiors. That works well for most players instead of the ever-improving sensation of the leather melting to mold around the player's foot.

Upper/Technology of the Nike Tiempo Legend 8

As earlier mentioned, the Tiempo Legend 8 boasts of a premium kangaroo leather with its outer layer, though everything under the hood is knit. Its Flyknit tunnel is essentially a cylindrical sock that wraps your midfoot to help it stay in place while playing.

From the outside, the FlyKnit fit tunnels look like the same material used to make the tongue in the Tiempo Legend 8" s predecessor. However, the tunnel wraps your foot's lateral parts. You also get to the return of the beloved Quadfit mesh last seen on Nike's Phantom VSN.

The Quadfit Mesh is one of Nike's best proprietary knitted materials used on the boot's forefoot region. This mesh stretches in four directions to accommodate the shape of your foot while preventing its outer leather from overstretching.

While the leather gives the boot a lightweight feel, it's not the star of the show. Nike has cleverly used a one-piece upper devoid of stitching, keeping the material soft while reducing the leather's water seepage.

Performance

While playing, the Tiempo Legend 8 delivers an admirable performance. That shows you never have to worry about slipping when running at pace, as they are among the most secure boots on the market. However, leather soccer cleats are all about having a refined touch, and this is where the Tiempo Legend 8 might disappoint purists.

The boot's knitted materials are the star of the show, though leather purists might argue that it adds an extra layer between your foot and the leather. Nonetheless, you still enjoy a soft and padded sensation with every touch. Additionally, it feels good to trap and pass the ball.

Thanks to its clean upper, you won't get any distractions, and controlling the ball is a real breeze. Its clean touch makes it feel like an all-rounded boot, working great, whether you're passing, striking, or tackling.

You can expect it's whole upper to break in with a single game, with the Quadfit and Flyknit molding perfectly around your leg. That gives it a feeling of having a second skin that responds well to your shift in direction and gives you better performance in every game.

For most of the boot's lifespan, you can also expect the knit to maintain its lifespan, ensuring the whole upper doesn't overstretch. As such, its performance is much better than any Tiempo Legend cleat, feeling more like the PhantomVSN with an improved fit and soft touch.

Insole/Outsole

One thing that the Tiempo Legend 8 didn't change from its predecessor is the hyperstability of its soleplate. Its soleplate features a mix of bladed, conical, and chevron studs that seem more aggressive for this kind of boot. The chevrons and blades are inbuilt to help you aggressively dig into the ground for acceleration while its rounded studs help you maneuver easily.

Nike's hyperstability soleplate makes the Tiempo Legend 8 FG natural surfaces. This soleplate is engineered using data from Nike's Finite Element Analysis. The outsole also boasts of Pebax material, designed for high-speed movements and twists in all directions.

While on the game, the outsole offers responsive feedback and light support. That's scientifically inspired by the studs' configuration, which guarantees stability when doing quick turns and speedy accelerations.

As with the Tiempo Legend 7, it would have been better if the Tiempo Legend 8 came with a less aggressive pattern for the pass and move kind of players. Fortunately, the insole is well molded to boost comfort and reduce the studs' pressure points. Additionally, the Tiempo Legend 8 features the NikeGrip to prevent sliding inside the boots, though it's only ideal when playing on the firm ground like natural grass.

Final Thoughts

Essentially, the Nike Tiempo Legend 8 FG feels like the perfect workhorse, such as the Terminator T-800, but it's all tech and no soul. As such, the Tiempo Legend 8 FG proves that shoe brands have reached their limit on leather innovations while making premium soccer cleats. For this reason, the Tiempo Legend 8 FG like the turning point on how leather boots are designed – leather exteriors, but with other materials beneath as well.