Arsenal will say goodbye to a club icon after just nine more games that has witnessed Mikel Arteta's best moments in their Premier League title bid
At the end of the season after the jubilation to reflect on the successes and failures of a campaign the Arsenal players will do a lap of the field. This is often a time for supporters to show appreciation for the team and in some cases say goodbye to figures whose careers in north London are coming to an end.
However, a departure of a very different kind in just nine games time when Arsenal finish their season at home to Wolves will be a sad one for many fans. Although some players could be waving goodbye, the last game of the season will mark the end of what has become an iconic away kit this season.
Yes, I am dead serious. In my mind, and I know in the mind of thousands of others, the black patterned away kit is the best kit I’ve ever seen our beloved club adorned in.
The popularity of the strip can be seen in the calls for Adidas to quickly restock the apparel on the Arsenal website. Fans received an email last night at 2am UK time on Friday to let them know that the replica shirt was back in stock; after just 20 minutes it had again sold out.
Bear in mind there are less than two months of the current season remaining and a shirt has never been more well-received or sold as quickly. The sleek design with the etched ‘AFC’ graphics in grey on the torso and sleeves is such a crisp aesthetic.
Combine that with the gold-bronze-like cannon, sponsorships and Adidas logo, and you have a perfect combination of colours. There’s one way which would honour the sheer beauty of the shirt above all others and that is having it be the away kit of a league-winning season.
This weekend Arsenal travel to Anfield. With the home side in their famous red, it’s likely the black kit will again be adorned and what a famous victory the Gunners could record to break a run that’s persisted since 2012 of winless fixtures.
This kit deserves the best. It’s had that with the season so far, and it’s time to finish it in the perfect way.