The Nike Five Zoom T7/Nike 5 Zoom T-7 trainers comes in two distinct flavours; the CS version (black and green with lugs on the base for Astro/3G turf) and the FS or ‘Futsol’ version (green and red with gum sole for indoor courts).
This review deals with the FS version although they are all but identical to the CS version with the exception of the sole material and colour.
The Nike Five trainer range goes up in increments (T-3, T-5, T-7 etc) with additional features added each time. The T-7 is Nike’s top of the line indoor shoe for 2009. Features listed include Zoom air units, Poron cushioning, toe punt shoe box and offset medial lacing. All these features can also be found in the T-5 trainer, however the T-7 also adds Kangaroo leather for increased comfort.
So how are they? You can tell by looking at my earlier posts ‘Nike/Adidas, make some trainers for the over 30 crowd‘ and ‘The pursuit of the perfect indoor football trainers‘ that I’m a bit of a geek when it comes to finding something comfy to play indoor football in. If you’re light on your feet, have perfectly functioning knees and are not prone to over pronation of the foot, many of my criticisms of this shoe will seem unfounded. With those caveats firmly in place let’s take a look.
First the good. These trainers look the part, bright lime green and soft supple leather. Furthermore, the grey interior around the heel area is leather, not fabric, so is likely to wear well over time. They fit a slim foot well (as per usual Nike fitting) and don’t have any unnecessary bulk - allowing good touch and control of the ball. They are also extremely light, weighing in at around 320g per shoe.
The Nike Five T-7 trainers have been expressly designed to be keep the foot close to the ground, subsequently the cushioning is minimal. The ‘Zoom air unit’ is merely a 3-4mm thick blob of air stuck to the bottom of the insole, not built into the actual trainer. The ‘Poron cushioning’ is similarly integrated: merely stuck to the bottom of the insole. This lack of substantial cushioning is likely to be less of an issue when playing on Astro/3G (which by its nature provides greater underfoot comfort) but if you are used to harder indoor courts (typically constructed by laying a wooden surface over a concrete base) it should be a consideration. And if you’re over thirty and usually suffer sore knees the day after playing - forget it!
The other area that these trainers fall completely shor
t is for players suffering any degree of over pronation of the foot (flat feet). The T-7 offer absolutely no arch support, visibly sinking in that area when worn by users with flatter feet.
The Nike T-7 are a fine and well thought out trainer but for a specific subset of players: young, slim players with a good arch in their foot will love them. However, for players hoping to retain the use of their knees in advancing years or suffering any degree of over pronation of the foot these trainers simply can’t be recommended.
For this latter group of players, I would recommend the Asics indoor court range. Despite being targeted at Squash players, the ‘Asics Gel Sensei’ (2008) and ‘Asics Gel Blast 2‘ (2008/2009) trainers, at the expense of a little ball control, provide a level of comfort and durability for indoor football simply not offered by the mainstream manufacturers.
Carlos Taborda 
jp 
kaysir 
Melvyn 
Hey great review! I’m trying to make up my mind between the T7’s and the Nike Total90 Strike II L-TF (http://www.soccer.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Merchant_Id=1&Ne=646&N=4294960675+572+4294959028&Product_Id=491260)
I honestly can’t make up my mind. I’m also in the same situation as you, my feet are prone to injury and my knees suffer every time I play!
Have you ever played with the Total90?
Would not recommend the total90 unless you buy top, top of the line K leather. Total 90 feel like you are playing in workboots. I can honestly say my play dropped trying to use the T90 Strike’s. Was like playing with big plastic wellies (rain boots). Looking at the nike5’s and the T-7’s in Kangaroo leather. right now i switched to some lowend Puma for indoor and what a difference. I have flat feet and the low profile, min. material are ideal for playmaking/passing on turf. Depending on the surface, i find the T90’s have too many small studs and you get tripped up by the “carpet monster”. just my opinion. you’ll see them on Ebay soon, size 10 USA for sale (the T90). : )
Hi Carlos, I used to have a pair of Total 90 AIR trainers. They weren’t bad but those ones you have linked to don’t have any air cushioning or shox at the heel so given the fact your knees already hurt I think you’re knees are still likely to suffer with them. Truth is, I just don’t think the big manufacturers (Nike, Adidas, Puma etc) consider this when coming up with the designs. Have you thought about trying court shoes (e.g. ones made for Squash)? If you’re playing indoor I’m now convinced these offer the best performance if you get a good pair like the Asics Gel Sensei or Gel Blast 2. They don’t have nice features like the offset lacing etc but it means you can walk sensibly the next day and play more times a week - for me that’s a fair trade!
really like the read, a really good review that actually had the important factors that you need to take into consideration when buying a pair of footy trainers - keep up the good work!
Thanks for the kind words. Glad it was useful.
http://www.asicsamerica.com/products/product.aspx?PRODUCT_ID=240012285&TITLE_CATEGORY_ID=250002693&PARENT_CATEGORY_ID=250001583
Heads up on the best 5-a-side trainers ive ever played in, there made by asics and there for volleyball but they have excellent shock absorption and cushioning for indoor courts!
Kaysir - yes, they’re really similar to the Asics Gel Sensei shoes we get here in the UK (Squash variants) and detailed here. Heaps better than the ‘proper’ football trainers from Nike, Adidas and Puma etc
Nice review..you may want to check out Dalponte trainers..the brazillian national futsal team uses them…