Liverpool’s alliance with Adidas was launched in style today as some of the Liverpool FC big names spent their first day back on public duty by modelling the new shirts.
Captain Steven Gerrard modelled the new home kit, all Red of course, as it has been since Bill Shankly came up with the idea, to put fear into Liverpool opponents.
Fellow England international and club vice-captain Jamie Carragher was given the job of modelling the shirt already seen in Liverpool’s two pre-season fixtures. The white shirts, shorts and socks, with a green flash, are the kit that will ultimately become Liverpool’s third kit, if required, for domestic fixtures, but will predominately be used for an away shirt in European games. If Liverpool can negotiate the qualifiers next month, that will be in Champions League fixtures.
Xabi Alonso was given the task of modelling an all yellow kit, the same shade of yellow that I first remember Liverpool wearing many years ago when Liverpool really only had two kits. In those days, to see LFC wearing all yellow was a real novelty. I can’t remember the details now, and could be mixing more than one game up, but I seem to recall Alan Hansen getting a rare goal and commenting after the game that his celebration was the fastest he’d ever run. The opponents may have been Manchester United, wearing their own second kit of white shirts and black shorts, which clashed with our at the time. Looking at the new kit in the photographs, it certainly seems a very bright shade of yellow.
Xabi’s fellow Spaniard Pepe Reina was also on hand to do his bit on the catwalk – of course wearing the goalkeeper’s kit. This is the “home” goalkeeper’s outfit, and at least one more outfit will be released in the coming weeks. Pepe’s shirt was what I’d describe as “gold”, but of course there’ll be an official name for the shade.
Three of the four players on show are sponsored by Adidas, but not Carragher. He had his Puma boots blacked out for the photo-shoot.
The photos on this page are from the Official Liverpool FC website.
Adidas have produced a brief statement here on their website, where they say:
“Back on home turf, as adidas returns to Liverpool.
adidas, the world’s number one football brand, has returned to Anfield and is once again proud to supply the new kit for Liverpool Football Club.
adidas becomes the official kit and sportswear supplier in a sponsorship agreement that takes effect from July 2006, in time for the start of the 06/07 season.
Previously, adidas produced Liverpool’s kit between 1985 and 1996 and the new strips hark back to the glory days when adidas first supplied Liverpool FC.”
The site then links to a special page on the official site, where a “Flash” presentation currently loops round a set of Liverpool players, all wearing the new red shirt. Keep an eye on that page as it will surely contain more content in time. http://www.liverpoolfc.tv/adidas.
It’s great to see Liverpool’s shirts to feature a prominent Liverpool FC badge after years where it looked like an afterthought. The new kits are in a similar style to other Adidas kits produced for other sides this term, but they still clearly look like Liverpool’s very own.
The kits will look even better next May, if Steven Gerrard is wearing one with the Premiership trophy lofted above his head!
