Puma’s firm ground (FG) boots tend to be quite AG friendly and the Puma Future Z is no exception, earning our seal of approval for AG pitches. The compression bands held my feet firm and pivoting around in the Z soleplate is effortless, even on artificial ground (AG). I twist and run laterally past a defender a lot and the boot kept up with me on all occasions. Much of my movement is economical but it requires me to go from 0-100 in a fraction of a second to sprint into space to receive the ball when the sliver of opportunity arises. I’m usually a Thomas Mueller-esque “ raumdeuter“. With such a promising first impression of the Puma Future Z’s fit and lockdown, I wanted to put it to the test. Within a couple of minutes of light jogging and warm ups, my concerns and the tightness melted away. The first time I put the boots on, I thought the compression band was tight around my midfoot – if it was a little tighter, the band would have caused cramping in my feet. The boots feel light on feet at 220g in a US 9 and you’d be hard-pressed to hear anyone having issues with its weight or how they fit especially when you take your first steps in them. Those with super wide feet should go true to size but for everyone else, go half down. The Puma Future Z fits perfectly width and length wise when I went half a size down. All you need to do is to loosen the top laces and in goes your feet. Putting on the boot isn’t a chore despite how small the mouth looks.