We’re sorry for being so inexcusably late to the party for this absolute diamond of a Vissel Kobe shirt from Asics.
Whilst we were busy tucking into plate after plate of mince pies, thus giving up any chance of fitting into player issue shirts for at least another year; J-League clubs have been releasing their new kits for the 2020 season.
As Spanish striker David Villa brought the curtain down on his glittering career at the close of the 2019 campaign, Asics unveiled their exciting new diamond designs for a Vissel Kobe squad brimming with international talent.
Football fans with memories of the clean-cut Asics shirts of the 1990s will recall the Japanese firm with great fondness.
Their kits for the likes of Leeds United, Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers, Norwich City and Sampdoria were the very essence of Sartorial.Soccer elegance, but then overnight, they seemingly disappeared from the world of football, apparently to concentrate on producing running shoes.
Still alive and kicking and very big in Japan, Asics have supplied Vissel Kobe stars including Andrés Iniesta, Lukas Podolski and former Arsenal defender Thomas Vermaelen with an absolute diamond of a home strip for 2020.
Iniesta, Podolski and Co will wear the shirts on New Year’s Day as they take on J-League rivals Kashima Antlers in the Emperor’s Cup Final in Tokyo.
This claret and white kit is an eye-catching departure from the club’s usual fare and just leaves us wanting much, much more of the same from Asics.
UPDATE: Vissel Kobe beat Kashima Antlers 2-0 in the early hours of New Year’s Day to win the Emperor’s Cup with David Villa making a late cameo appearance.
What do you think of Vissel Kobe’s diamond-cut 2020 kit by Asics?
All images are courtesy of Vissel Kobe.
Sartorial Soccer 