Manchester City have dropped their 2022/23 shirt for the new season, with a new look that might divide fans.
It's not quite the emblazoned "Man City" text across this season's third strip but the centring of the badge and Puma logo will be sure to upset someone out there – as will the touches of dark red flourishes on the collar and sleeves.
Are City bored of Manchester being blue? Or is this all part of a plan to incorporate Aston Villa's kit colours into the City strip to bring the best out of Jack Grealish? Or maybe this is the first step of an initiative to seize Liverpool and Jurgen Klopp and add them to the City Football Group? Well, that would be one way to end this rivalry.
Really though, City used to have red trim on the socks and sometimes the shorts of their kits. While the last shirt paid tribute to one legend – City had a clock-inspired theme last time out, with the shirt paying homage to the ten year anniversary of Sergio Aguero's title-winning goal at QPR – this one is in honour of Colin Bell.
There's an insignia of a crown on the inside of the neck for Bell with his nickname "The King", while the round neck is reminiscent of how the shirt looked decades ago. The shirt is expected to come with a new typeface for the numbers and players' names on the back, too – since that was specific to the Aguero clock theme.
“The new Manchester Home kit is a fitting tribute to classic City Home kits styles of the past. We wanted to create a modern spin on the jerseys worn between 1967 to 1971,” said Marco Mueller, Senior Head of Product Line Management Teamsport Apparel. “The maroon trim was an important detail because this was an iconic color seen on many of the previous City Home kits. The jersey is a great homage to the entertaining teams of old and the exciting free-flowing football of the current City team.”
Jon Bell, Colin’s son, said, “As a family, we’re incredibly touched that the club and PUMA have chosen to remember the teams of the late 1960’s and my dad with next season’s Home kit – it’s a beautiful gesture. It really captures the history and togetherness of Manchester City as a club, and I hope the fans like it and can remember those great moments.”
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Here at FFT, we have to say, we're fans – but that at this point we're fully invested in the get-up that Pep Guardiola is going to be donning next season and more interested of shots of the Catalan wearing hoodies than Grealish looking all seductive. Sorry, Jack.
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