PREMIER LEAGUE NEW KIT SPECIAL: The strips your team will be wearing in 2011-12

By Sportsmail Reporter Updated:

Forget about London Fashion Week and ignore what’s happening on the catwalks of New York and Milan.

The smartest gear for next season will soon hit the shops and you can get a first look right here as the Premier League teams unveil their home, away and third kits for the new campaign.

Some supporters will be desperate to pull on their their new strip while some will be thinking ‘it’s just not me’ but will wear it anyway.

How many bigger-built fans have their fingers crossed their club doesn’t go down the skinny-fit route Spurs went down a few seasons ago?

And before the official release there’s bound to be some dodgy fakes doing the rounds on the internet.

So with a whole host of new strips hitting the stores in the coming weeks – Sportsmail brings you the best – and worst – of what’s on offer throughout the summer.

ARSENAL

A fading title challenge aside, Arsenal don’t have much to cheer these days (just take a look at the Emirates trophy cabinet) so to make up for it, the kit next season is set to celebrate their 125th anniversary.

This is the official version of the new kit, but it looks a little lost without a white collar.

After getting over the initial shock of what looks like a cut-and-shut kit, fans may take to the blue Monacoesque style shirt that takes the same colour scheme as the club’s mid-90s away kit.

The diagonal line represents the gnomon (the pointer) which casts the shadow on a sundial – to commemorate the original Dial Square sundial on the site of the Arsenal munitions factory in Woolwich, where the Club was founded in 1886.

The back of the shirt is entirely navy blue, with one sleeve navy and the other turquoise blue. A stripe runs down each sleeve, broken into three parts to further represent the Dial Square sundial.

According to Nike, The improved Nike Dri-Fit fabric, now 13 per cent lighter than previous kits, helps to quickly evaporate moisture, drawing it through the fabric to the surface to keep players dry…what happens when it rains we are not entirely sure. Sportsmail verdict 6/10

ASTON VILLA

Following the arrival of £24million Darren Bent in January, Aston Villa fans probably had something else in mind when they heard they would be seeing more cheques in the summer.

Sadly for them it may turn out the ‘checks’ are for their new home strip – with this latest kit from Nike not stretching too far into innovation.

In fact take away the claret checks and you just have Villa’s home shirt from the 2008/09 season.

Admittedly it doesn’t look that bad but you can’t help think Nike are scraping the barrel for trying to think of ways to design a Villa kit.

Not quite on par with Croatia, but a decent effort nonetheless.Sportsmail Verdict 7/10

And you don’t have to look too far to see where the inspiration is behind the away strip – which has been confirmed by the club.

Checks can look good and with the claret trim in support, this is a decent effort – even if it does look like a Boavista shirt that has been through the wash a fair few times.

Made from Nike Considered recycled material, both the shirt and shorts are produced using up to 13 discarded plastic water bottles, making it Nike’s greenest ever kit.

For the fan’s sake we hope that is the only bit of rubbish they will see from their team next season.

Sportsmail verdict 6/10

BLACKBURN

After securing Premier League survival only on the final day of last season and selling star man Phil Jones, Rovers supporters can be forgiven for feeling a little negative about their team’s chances next term.

Thankfully, Umbro have stepped in to seemingly design two decent strips for Steve Kean’s side for 2011/12.

Both the home and away shirts here are unconfirmed and won’t help recapture past Premier League glories (no matter what technology Umbro will put in the kit to ‘aid’ performance.)

But fans aiming to buy a replica will at least look like they can walk around Lancashire with a bit of pride.

Supporters will be pleased there is not a ‘Crown Paints’ logo in sight as it ruined their home shirt for the last three years, but would they really prefer the ‘Venky’s’ brand instead?

Rovers are expected to wear the above kit (with logo) for their pre-season tour in Hong Kong but are expected to confirm a new sponsor in time for the new campaign. Venky’s or not we hope it doesn’t spoil a tidy kit from Umbro. Sportsmail verdict 7/10

And that goes for the away kit too where Rovers may wear yellow for the first time since 2004.

If so it’s a welcome change from the usual red and black numbers the club churn out, yet is not as disastrous as the orange kit from the late 90s. Sportsmail verdict 7/10

BOLTON

Rumours that Bolton’s new home strip was designed by a five-year-old dizzy on lemonade are yet to be founded, either way this is enough to give you a migraine.

The only credit to Reebok is that they have been ambitious with their latest attempt and no fan can complain that it looks remotely similar to any other strip from seasons gone by.

But judging by the look on Kevin Davies’ face, he doesn’t seem overjoyed with the latest design and it’s hard to imagine where you can wear this anywhere outside the Reebok Stadium without being laughed at…and that’s before you get to the netting/see-through material on the front of the shirt.

Bolton may have got away with this in the fashion-challenged early 90s, but it’s hard to see this being looked back on as being innovative or classic a few years down the line. Sportsmail Verdict 3/10

Yet there is better news for those looking for a more simple design. The black away shirt shares the same Reebok template but with less Picasso and more elegance is a big improvement on the home shirt.

So much so that for the first time next season, the Reebok Stadium could be full of black shirts in the stands. Sporstmail rating 7/10

CHELSEA

They may be slightly off the pace with a handful of games to go in the Premier League but Chelsea have stolen a march on their rivals by bursting out of the traps in the fashion race.

The new home kit takes inspiration from Chelsea strips of the early 1980s with the shadow striped design on the front while the white shoulder pad has been added to make adidas’ iconic three stripes stand out.

Could you carry this off on the King’s Road? We think so. Sportsmail verdict 8/10

Not bad but if you’re going for blue and black stripes, do it right like Inter Milan. Sportsmail away verdict 6/10

Overall though a solid effort from Puma who are in the last year of their contract with Spurs before the club switch to Under Armour for next season. Sportsmail verdict 7/10

WEST BROM

After avoiding a relegation scrap last season, West Brom fans can celebrate a rare successive Premier League campaign by splashing out on two new replica kits this summer.

Adidas replace Umbro and supporters can be satisfied with the German kit supplier’s first efforts.

The home strip is a standard Adidas template but the blue and white stripes work well and it contains that old favourite ‘climacool’ technology…meaning the shirt will cost you nearly £45.

The only downside is the ‘bodog’ sponsor which looks tacky on the home kit with its splashes of red and gold, otherwise it looks the part. Sportsmail verdict 7/10

The away strip ticks all the boxes, with the cyan kit a massive improvement on the dull all-black number from last season and is sure to be a fan favourite. Sportsmail verdict 9/10

WIGAN

Wigan produced a great escape to beat relegation last season, but judging by their latest new home shirt the celebrations haven’t lasted too long.

Thankfully the tacky single stripe from last term has gone, and kit manufactures Mi-Fit have opted for a plain blue shirt with white trim around the sleeves and collar to compliment.

But the star of the show has to be the buttoned neck – when was the last time a Premier League kit had that?!

It looks slightly bland but as far as football shirts go, it’s one you can at least walk down the street in without looking like a fashion disaster. And at £35 it is one of the cheaper shirts available too.

Whether it manages to cram more fans into a normally sparse DW Stadium is anyone’s guess, but at least Wigan are offering some sort of value for money to their supporters.

Sportsmail verdict 6/10

The Latics have two new away strips for this season and Mi-Fit again stick to the basics – and have not made a bad job of it.

The round neck navy blue shirt looks the part with it’s fluorescent yellow trim. While the white third strip is probably one of the smartest in the Premier League with it’s traditional collar and gold trim.

The sponsor logo slightly tarnishes it, but it looks much better than last season’s black number. Sportsmail verdict 7/10

WOLVES

Wolves have been hot under the collar trying to beat relegation for much of the season so to combat any future problems, designers Burrda have opted for a simple round neck on a new home shirt – the club’s fifth in as many years.

Much of the heavy black trim has gone from the previous design replaced with faint black lines which look fine until you notice the front of the shirt.

The line going across the chest looks like somebody has made a mistake with a ballpoint pen on the design template and is going to take some getting used to.

However it is a subtle attempt to be unique from the designers which fans could grow to like. Sportsmail verdict 6/10

Better news for supporters (and their purse strings) is that the club have decided to retain this year’s black away kit for next season.

Top 3 premier league kits 2011 12 edit by Dream League Soccer Kits With Logo URL