Well, the votes have all been counted and double checked and I can announce that the winner of the True Colours Best Premier League Kit for 2010-11 is the:
Manchester City Third Kit
Congratulations to Umbro who produced the kit and who incidentally also won last year’s True Colours Best Premier League Kit with that season’s Manchester City home strip. This time round though the third swept the board, closely followed by Manchester City’s home kit. Seems Umbro and City are definitely doing something right up there!!
Whats interesting as well is that this winning kit is one of the rare football outfits that has a two-year lifespan – food for thought really that in this day and age, when football kits come and go in a single season, that a strip is just as popular in its second year than it was in its first. All credit really to this superb Umbro design that reinvented a long forgotten City away kit style from the 1970s and brought it bang up to date. Perhaps the fact that the sponsors’ logo takes a bit of a back seat in order not to impinge on the design had something to do with it?
Last year saw the strip worn with black shorts and socks, this season though the overall strip has been updated with the home kit’s white shorts (complete with tonal badge/logo) and a smart new design of socks (featuring red and black bands) now being favoured, although the previous season’s black shorts have been worn on occasion.
A worthy winner…
As you say John, Umbro really have been coming up with some great kits in the last few years.
By the way, has it actually been worn with the new white shorts and socks? Whenever I’ve seen City wear it this season, it’s been with the black shorts and socks that they used last season…
Thanks AJ – interesting point, I’ve done a quick review of the season and came up with the following stats:
Worn with white shorts/socks:
FC Timisoara
Lech Poznan
Aston Villa
Worn with black shorts/socks:
Wigan
West Ham
Leicester
Chelsea
Everton
Thanks, John, I must have missed those three matches.
I have a couple more questions, if that’s okay…
Is this the first time, since the original in the 70’s, that Man City have had this design?
Also, was the original in the 70’s – worn with black, or white, shorts and socks?
Thanks guys…
In the Seventies it was worn with black shorts and socks, the key difference was the diagonal went bottom left (as we look) to top right unlike this design.
A worthy winner, and maybe a three-in-a-row is in the offing for next season?
https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/246960_10150187794348663_49951383662_6888170_555331_n.jpg
It’s certainly a kit classic. A well deserved winner!
Thanks for that, Andrew.
Denis, don’t you think if the new Man City away kit is the red and black stripes, that they’ll have this seasons navy blue away kit – as next season’s third kit?
By the way, I missed Match Of The Day, did any teams preview next season’s kit in the final games of the season?
I much prefer that kit with black shorts – I would’ve liked to see a white/black/white combo. I was gutted that City inexplicably wore the home kit away at Birmingham!
And to those who have asked, yes this season’s away will be next season’s third. I’ve also heard it said that after 5 years, the home strip will revert to a 2-yr lifespan. But I’m not certain on this.
Says it all really that the best kit of 2010/11 was one that was brought out in 2009!
Seems the best kits are being released on the continent at the moment. FC Copenhagen and FC Schalke had some great shirts this year, cool and refined, but at the same time some of the craziness of the early 90s seems to be presnet, albeit in a more controlled form. Marseille’s kits have bordered on the insane of late, but still look great and their away for next season (http://www.footballshirtculture.com/11/12-kits/olympique-marseille-11-12-adidas-away-kit.html) is a cracker! (The home’s pretty tasty too). In addition, Ajax’s new away shirt is very early 80s and adds nicely to the recent retro trend. Looks set to be a colourful Champion’s League season next year 🙂
AJ, I know Chelsea wore their new kit in their penultimate game against Newcastle…Bolton seem to have worn theirs too, as did Newcastle.
The new man city away… http://www.sportsdirect.com/umbro-manchester-city-away-shirt-2011-2012-379666
Thanks, Nick.
Although, now I think what Denis actually meant was, the new Man City away kit will probably win the True Colours vote next season – which means three-in-a-row for Man City.
Not the white kit being retianed for a third season. Sorry about that, Denis.
By the way, Man City players wore the new away kit last night, at the FA Cup celebration. Looks very nice.
You’re right, Rich, about the crazy early-90s style making a comeback. It seems Nike are big on this. The standard Nike goalkeeper kits from this season, as worn by Manchester United, Arsenal, Barcelona etc, have a very early 90s look about them, don’t they?
I can’t say I’m fond of the early-90s style, and don’t really like it making a comeback.
Or maybe with Umbro going with the more refined and minimalist style, Nike have decided to go for the more daring and outlandish style.
Judging from the apparent Arsenal goalkeeper kit for next season, they are continuing this!
http://i54.tinypic.com/v6hweh.jpg
Barcelona’s goalkeeper kit is apparently the same design, but green with yellow – instead of navy with orange.
That new black & red Man City away kit is outstanding !
Adidas seem to be the main trailblazers of early 90sism, but seemingly only with the French clubs…though that Arsenal goalie kit is decidely Infamous90sHullTigerStripeShirt (which is what I believe it’s called in the Nike catalogue 😉 ).
I’m quit eliking the 90s revival, though only as it seems to have a touch of restraint to it this time round…though given it’s 20 years ago, it could be classed as retro…which may mean we have to rebrand Umbro’s stylings as super-retro…or Retro Classic ™?
Daniel – I’m not so sure – I wish the stripes were verticle on the sleeves, and perhaps the Etihad logo might look better as white. Ah well, perhaps it’ll grow on me.
I might just buy the navy shirt instead – such a great kit.
I gather the design of the sleeve stripes considers outstreched arms when celebrating a goal!
Yeah, Nick, Umbro seem to have a thing about using gold for the logos/sponsors on Man City kits, when white would probably look better.
Like on the kit in this post. As well as the black away kit from last season, and of course, the upcoming red and black away kit.
AJ, yes you’re right with the second interpretation!
Can’t say I’m too enamoured with the sleeve striping on the City kit though, and none too pleased about the GK kits becoming more ‘busy’ again!
I know it’s easy to be kneejerk about new kits, but the Newcastle home kit is a monstrosity. It reminds me of a black/white version of the kit Sheffield Wednesday went down in.
The only good thing I can say for it is that it makes it likely that Newcastle’s next home kit will be ultra-traditional. They should never have abandoned the adidas kit with the grandad collar – now that was class….
I agree, its one of the worst kits Ive seen in a picture, and up close, its just so cheap looking. When I was in SD, looking at it while the classy Sunderland shirt (with a really cool looking back, while ours has a stupid broken one) made me sick. Cannot say that it reminds me of a black and white version of the kit Sheff Wed went down in, they wore traditional kits with normal stripes on sleeves when that happened in 2000 and last year, I think you were thinking of the 1996 – 98 kit, which was quite good really.
Spiderbait – you’re probably right. Of course, If Wednesday hadn’t stopped their kits being included in True Colours, I’d be better informed!
Ned – If you look on the drop down menu from ‘articles’ you’ll see the Sheff Weds kits that would have appeared in the book.
Wednesday’s kit in 1999-2000 had a completely plain back, which is maybe why ned got confused.