Hello Insiders,

Well you have all been waiting for the revelation of the 125th Anniversary Away shirt and here it is. I have done our usual artists impression to protect our sources. Loyal readers of this blog will know from our previous exclusive Arsenal Kit releases that you can rely upon us, however I reckon there was a plot to try and prevent Arsenal Insider from claiming it’s usual accurate release exclusive for the shirt design, when free London daily paper The Metro give away the details of the home shirt in March. But no-one to my knowledge had the real away shirt. So the palms had been very sweaty whilst the usual fakes did the rounds.

My honest feeling is that Arsenal have been taken for a ride by Nike with the divided design. How shall we describe it?

Modern?

Unique?

What about just plain STUPID!

I cannot describe the colours or the design in words that even I can understand. but what I like as a feature is the contrasting piped trim down the centre of the sleeve. The lighter cyan line down the navy blue sleeve and vice versa. But even though this shirt is not my cup of tea, I bet you we will see loads of people wearing this shirt. As Arshavin recently remarked, you will all look like jockeys. I KID YOU NOT…

However it is the badge that I find intriguing.

Here is a close up,

the years 1886 was when the “Royal Arsenal” was formed in Woolwich, then add 125 years and you get to 2011, but what does the FORWARD stand for? Let’s have a competition and the winner gets an away shirt, if you get it right, because I haven’t the faintest clue… It is obviously VERY deep! I mean DEEP DEEP underground.

(Update to Blog: – Thanks to some very well informed readers (Marlon Lorde), “FORWARD” was the first Arsenal motto. There was a book entitled “FORWARD ARSENAL” by an ex player called BERNARD JOY this confirmed this. As for the Crest the very first crest of The Royal Arsenal is displayed here , so the inspiration for the design has been thought through with some accuracy.)

Ok for my serious comments, when Arsenal merchandising expect several thousand fans to splash out on an Anniversary single season shirt then the improvement that I would have made would have been to have a single line of red trim down the sleeve similar to the contrasting trim on the away sleeve trim. Are you listening Arsenal? You still have time to change the fabric run…lol

As for the away shirt? Well believe me, I’ve slept on this, and it doesn’t improve the night after or after several nights…

neither does it improve after five pints of lager, so you are just going to have to get used to it.

(Update to Blog: Another reader (Eduardo) reminded me that we have been here before. Remember the away kit of the the 1995/6 season, David Bowie kit I used to call it, well this is what it looked like…

So, Retro and not so far away from what we have already had!)

But look at it this way… You are supporting YOUR club by buying this “one off” memorable collectors item, and you can’t allow our squad to be alone looking like jockeys fleeing from man eating Stallions at Newmarket racecourse during away games can you? So join in the fun and just hand over your 40 quid… Sick bags are extra!

Remember this will be your investment in your club, and you can put always put it in the attic after the season ends and give it to your grandchildren !!!

(I will give anyone £50 if they can photograph me wearing the thing next season and send it to the blog.)

I will try to answer any non abusive comments tomorrow morning!

Remember, these are my artists impressions, and NOT fakes, just wait and see!

FTK.