The first images of what looks to be Manchester United’s new home kit for the 2023/24 season have been leaked online and, as always when it comes to footy shirts, it’s divided opinion.
As any lover of the beautiful game knows, footy kits aren’t just whatever the team wears over the course of a year: they often go down as season, sometimes era-defining bits of fashion infused with footballing memories of childhood, going to the games with your mates, seeing your favourite players and so on.
With that being said, like any group of supporters, Man United fans are always eager to see what the Red Devils will be wearing the following year and if these images are to be believed, this is what the 23/24 home kit looks like.
It isn’t often that we get a full video glimpse of leaked kits either, but you’re in luck this time:
As you can see, Adidas looked to have ditched the popular, retro-looking addition of a proper collar seen on the current shirt for a black and white V-neck design in line with the club’s regular secondary colours.
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The same colours can be seen on the cuffs as well and they have also got rid of the blocky, pentagonal crest shape around the badge that features on United’s 22/23 home shirt.
As for the exact shade of red and whether it differs at all, it’s rather hard to tell, but if you look closely you can see that there is a distinct texture.
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This static image gives a better idea of the faint pattern that the stitching creates.
Naturally, the verdict is pretty split as always, with fans dubbing it everything from “plain” or “a grower” to “beautiful” or maybe “the best shirt in years”.
There are also plenty that aren’t giving it the time of day and praying that it’s simply a fake, commenting, “disgusting”, “horrific” and “I’ll cry if this is it”; we even saw one person comparing it to “quilted toilet paper”. Ouch.
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While many are dubious as to whether this ‘leak’ can be trusted or not given that it still has TeamViewer as the sponsor, with their front-of-the-shirt contract ending this season, it is worth noting that the club stated they will remain there until a new main sponsor is found, which doesn’t look to have happened yet.
All that being said (and if this is indeed the genuine article), what do we think, Reds — is it a winner or simply another templated design from Adidas?
Wayne Rooney joins the cast of Gary Neville’s The Overlap
Danny Jones
Wayne Rooney has secured a new job just a few months on from departing as Birmingham City head coach, with the Manchester United and England legend being named as the latest member of The Overlap team.
Set to join the cast of the popular Stick to Football online series alongside the likes of former teammates Gary Neville and Roy Keane, as well as the rest of the recurring panel.
Rooney is also set to feature on various other shows across The Overlap channel, including the likes of their regular fan debates and other interviews with athletes and well-known figures.
They announced the signing in true transfer window fashion as well.
As transfer expert Fabrizio Romano quips in the video, Rooney “has signed an agreement with The Overlap” and is expected to make his debut very soon
‘Wazza’ has appeared as a pundit on Sky Sports in recent weeks and has even been spotted playing some FIFA with comedy YouTuber AngryGinge as part of his pro clubs series, but hasn’t been in a steady role since being sacked as the Birmingham manager at the start of the year.
Having already appeared as a guest in one of the most popular episodes of Stick to Football and clearly sharing a strong chemistry with his old friends – as well as the likes of fellow Scouser Jamie Carragher, Jill Scott and Ian Wright – it looks to be a natural fit for the sport-based channel.
The 38-year-old revealed some pretty interesting details about his playing and managerial career last time around, not to mention some of the other offers he’s had since…
Rooney reiterated during his own interview that his primary focus is still on coaching and finding his next managerial role, but for the time being, he’ll be bringing the insight of another ex-pro to the popular YouTube channel.
Speaking on his latest move, the former striker said, “I’m excited to announce that I will be joining my good mate Gary Neville and the team at The Overlap to appear on the channel across some of their brilliant shows on YouTube and the podcast. I can’t wait to get started”.
With an episode from at least one of their series going out most weeks, you can expect to see the footballing legend back on the channel soon.
Featured Images — The Overlap/Wayne Rooney (via Instagram)
Sport
Manchester City star Erling Haaland is now a playable character in Clash of Clans mobile game
Danny Jones
In yet more proof that footballers just live in an entirely different world from us, Manchester City star Erling Haaland has popped up in the popular mobile game, Clash of Clans – and it’s not just a little cameoeither.
Haaland‘s no stranger to the odd brand deal, so when we saw him cutting a promo for Clash of Clans we weren’t too surprised, but it’s safe to say we weren’t expecting to see footballers pop up in video games besides FIFA (sorry, EA FC) at any point this year.
The big number nine is not just a famous face to help push the already hugely popular mobile strategy and city-building game, they don’t need it; it turns out the lethal goalscorer is now going to be an actual playable character in the latest Clash of Clans update.
He even turned his hand to a bit of acting in the trailer:
As you can see, the 23-year-old stars in the new advert which sees troops appear in his home whilst he’s playing the game before being sucked into the game world.
Starring as the Barbarian King, he’s the first real person to ever feature in the game and will be available through a month-long football-themed seasonal event in-game.
When we stop and think about it, the Norwegian striker is pretty much a perfect fit given his Scandinavian heritage and the obvious Viking theme surrounding the franchise – not to mention the fact that he’s apparently been playing the game since he was 10.
He’s also been dropping a hint or two of late, in case you didn’t pick up on them.
Speaking on the collaboration, Haaland said: “I’ve been a huge fan of the game for a long time and know everything about it, so to appear as an in-game character is really cool”.
As for Finnish developer-publishers Supercell, CoC’s general manager Stuart McGaw said in an official announcement: “When we heard Erling Haaland was a fan of our game and that he wanted to partner with us, it was really a dream scenario.”
Haaland will be available to recruit in the game until 31 May, plus, if players raid his village and take down the Barbarian King himself, they can win additional rewards and a place on the leaderboards.
Danny Jones -
27th April 2023 
