And we're back. Did we even go away?
The Premier League will be returning with a bang, some new faces and out of sync fake crowd noise this weekend, and you know what that means.
Kits. Ranked.
Once again we're taking a look at the new home strips of all 20 Premier League teams and pitting them against each other in search of the best, with all 20 looking to emulate Arsenal's success last year.
This time around it is a little different as we actually saw a few of these kits towards the back end of the delayed 2019/20 season, but try to overlook that eh?
Here are the best, worst and downright dodgy home shirts for 2020/21.
20. West Bromwich Albion
Pretty much the only good thing about this kit is that it also doubles up as a giant barcode, making self-service shopping that much easier should you decide to buy it.
Which you really shouldn't.
Buy now from UK Soccer Shop
19. Sheffield United
If Blades fans enjoy a consistent thickness of stripe on their team’s shirt - and people do, that’s fine - then they’ll be delighted here.
But the sponsor is the same as last season too, as is the Adidas detailing.
It's pretty much just the sleeves that are different, and while you can understand that they don't want to rock the boat after last season's fine campaign, that's not what we're looking for here.
Buy now from SUFC Direct
18. Leicester City
Yeah, no, it is a new kit, honest. It just looks a hell of a lot like an old one.
The piping on the bottom of the sleeves is nice but you’re going to need more than that to impress us.
Buy now from JD Sports
17. Leeds United
Keeping it simple on their return to the Premier League are Leeds United, who unfortunately aren't allowed to be sponsored by Strongbow any more.
They've come up with this minimalist approach for the new campaign, and it's not really anything to write home about.
Buy now from Adidas
16. Burnley
Mostly claret, bit of blue, sponsor you've never heard of.
You've got house in Burnley kit bingo.
Buy now from UK Soccer Shop
15. Crystal Palace
Having pleasingly gone in on Chelsea for the rather familiar look to their third kit, Palace have gone with deeper stripes and a rather hopeful arrow pointing upwards for their home effort this time.
They've had nicer kits, although it's hard to think of any right now.
Buy now from CPFC Shop
14. Wolverhampton Wanderers
If subtle arrows on kits is a thing then Wolves really are putting their improvement under Nuno Espirito Santo at risk here.
Hopefully for them those downward lines won't be reflected in the league table, and instead might just be there to remind Adama Traore to look down at the ball occasionally.
Buy now from UK Soccer Shop
13. Everton
There’s a rare Premier League outing for Hummel at Everton as we all get to see what those famous chevrons look like on a kit that isn’t Denmark’s.
And to be honest, thank heavens for those chevrons as there really isn’t a whole lot else going on here.
Cheverton.
Buy now from KitBag
12. Newcastle United
The badge in the middle and the thicker stripes last season was a welcome dash of difference from Newcastle, but have they gone too much the other way this time?
Stripe balance is a difficult thing to strike, but we'd suggest there might just be a few more than is needed here.
Like those years on Alan Pardew's contract.
Buy now from Sports Direct
11. Arsenal
At some stage over the past year the designers from Adidas sat down and pondered what to do to last season’s Arsenal kit, our 2019/20 No. 1. And then they hit upon an idea.
Just add more stuff.
Stripes down the sides, weird triangles and 200 per cent more words on the sponsor have been grafted onto a darker number, and that’s made it all seem a bit packed.
And a bit worse.
Buy now from Adidas
10. Chelsea
Let’s be honest, it was always going to be better than last season’s offering of that ‘different’ casual shirt you bought on a whim, wore once on a date and were never quite convinced you were pulling off. You didn’t get the second date either.
Due to sponsorship arrangements Chelsea have been wearing this number since July 1, inaugurating it with a 3-2 defeat to West Ham, but it should surely see better results than that in the coming season given the Blues’ new signings.
It’s mid-table, but they shouldn’t be.
Buy now from Chelsea FC Official Store
9. Aston Villa
Pinstripes on a kit are good, we can all agree on that right?
And they've certainly added something to this Villa number that looks to be a little lighter than last season, much like the burden on Jack Grealish needs to be.
Buy now from Kitbag
8. Fulham
Euro 2004 wasn't a vintage tournament for Germany, but Fulham clearly saw enough in it to go with this homage in kit form.
And you know what, it works.
Like a stroll over Putney Bridge on a sunny afternoon, it's nice.
Buy now from Fulham FC Store
7. Manchester City
Bringing all the feelgood factor of a cracked iPhone screen to the Premier League it’s Manchester City, who have already been knocked out of Europe in this kit so at least we can prepare for what that’ll look like.
A kit made famous by a multitude of Lionel Messi photoshops, it’s different and a bit daring and that is all well and good, but it loses some points for the plain shoulders and back.
Lionel didn’t fancy them, clearly.
Buy now from Manchester City Online Shop
6. Liverpool
The much anticipated Nike debut dropped on social media this summer to a mixture of delight and distress, such is the life of a Liverpool fan.
The 1993ish, Julian Dicks-era teal addition to the neck was a panicked talking point, as was the stripe down the sides and even the shade of red, but overall it’s fine isn’t it?
Not as good as last season’s Premier League-winning pinstripes, but just fine.
Buy now from Kitbag
5. Manchester United
Very clean, isn’t it?
The shade of red is nice and now quite typically United, and where it could have just been that, the little black and gold flecks add something that you didn’t know you needed but you’re very glad is there.
Like a football shirt fleck version of Michael Carrick.
Buy now from Manchester United Direct
4. West Ham United
They do tradition well at West Ham. And they also do talking about tradition well, too.
But that's fine if it produces this number which gives you Bobby Moore feels and a taste for jellied eels.
They should have put that on the advert.
Buy now from Official West Ham United Store
3. Brighton and Hove Albion
You'd wear this on holiday wouldn't you? And given that we can't really go on holiday anywhere at the moment then Brighton is as good a place as any for it to be sported.
The Seagulls have ditched the thick stripes for pinstripes and they are pulling it off, with the collar also giving this a top three spot.
Buy now from UK Soccer Shop
2. Southampton
Oh hello.
Southampton sashay their way into a top two spot with what is commonly known in the trade as ‘a Reverse Peru’. Which, it turns out, is not as painful as it sounds.
This effort is bold, it’s different and it deserves acclaim, and while there might be some traditionalists and vertical stripe loyalists among the fanbase who don’t like it, they’ve had their way for far too long really haven’t they?
Buy now from Kitbag
1. Tottenham Hotspur
It’s not a classic year, but it is Tottenham’s year.
Spurs take top spot for a number that combines both modern and classic looks and other such things that make for an agreeable garment for a bunch of highly-skilled athletes to run around in.
Granted Spurs still haven’t won their yearly battle with the big red letters on the front of the shirt, but not even they can detract from a clean, cool number that might even make some of Jose Mourinho’s tactics look attractive.
Buy now from Sports Direct
What do you think of the rankings? Have your say in the comments below
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