The 2022/23 Premier League season is officially less than one month away.It's news that will come as music to the ears of supporters who have been twiddling their thumbs throughout the summer, feeding off scraps of transfer news and eagerly anticipating pre-season friendlies.However, one thing that has kept Premier League fans going in recent weeks has been kit news, whether that's official announcements from the club they support or getting ahead of the game with tantalising leaks.
2022/23 kits
With football fashion increasingly on the rise and a growing number of clubs releasing as many as four kits a season, the culture and intrigue surrounding the annual release of shirts has never been bigger.
And the beautiful thing about all the discourse surrounding jerseys is that there is never any right or wrong answers with the subjective nature of designs and fashion generally often producing a vast array of opinions.
So, as more and more Premier League shirts for the 2022/23 campaign are either leaked or officially unveiled, your humble GIVEMESPORT writer wanted to nail their colours to the mast early doors.
Yours truly has already named their favourite and least favourite 2022/23 kits, period, but now it's all about England's top-flight as I walk you through my personal picks for the best and worst strips to be either released or leaked.
Any leaks will be taken from the ever-reliable Footy Headlines and remember to bear in mind that my opinion is no less or more valuable than yours, so be sure to let us know your thoughts too across our social channels once we're finished here.
Plus, kudos to all the talented individuals behind these shirts. It's their creativity that makes the ever-popular world of football shirts so diverse and exciting with designs pushing the boundaries and ripping up conventions.
"Antony DEMAND! De Ligt Wants Chelsea" (Football Terrace)
Just because the kit doesn't happen to float my boat, that doesn't make it objectively bad, nor do my 'worst' picks in any way reflect deeper meanings in the designs beyond its aesthetics.
The best and worst 2022/23 Premier League kits
But enough with the disclaimers and housekeeping because we've got kits to rank, so be sure to check out my picks for the eight best and eight worst 2022/23 Premier League strips to be leaked or released so far:
Best
- Arsenal away
We're all in agreement here, right? Adidas have rustled up an incredible trio of Arsenal kits this summer, but their black and gold masterstroke complete with subtle texturing might just be the Premier League's standout shirt so far.
2. Liverpool away
A shimmering, dazzling, sparkling, glimmering, kaleidoscopic, mirage-like shot in the dark that could have fallen flat on its face, but somehow Nike pulls it all off superbly.
3. Manchester City home
A beauty beyond reproach. The centralised logos complete with the white and maroon trimmings were all Puma needed to make this one of the best releases of 2022/23.
4. Tottenham Hotspur third
You've got to applaud Nike for serving up Spurs with a selection of truly bonkers patterns on their alternate strips in recent years with some flopping and some soaring. It just so happens that their latest trip down Psychedelia Street gets it spot on.
5. Manchester City away
You just can't go wrong with a City away kit that's red and black, can you? It should look like a cheap imitation of AC Milan, but it absolutely doesn't.
6. Chelsea away
A divisive one, this, but there's something about the unabashed turquoise hoops on a white background married to subdued logos that makes the strip look so clean, smart and classy.
7. West Ham United away
We'll happily hold our hands up and say that we have a soft spot for black shirts in general, but the Hammers get extra brownie points for the *chef's kiss* pattern on the sleeves.
8. Nottingham Forest home
Arguably the most subjective part of rating football kits is the fine line between a design not doing enough and keeping it so simple that it looks brilliant. Forest's first home kit back in the Premier League, in case you're wondering, is undoubtedly the latter.
Worst
- Southampton away
Look, fair play for pushing the boat out - pun intended - with a dock-themed design evoking the city's heritage, but the wave pattern just comes off cartoony as opposed to classy from where we're stood. It's one of those that I want to like, but just can't bring myself to...
2. Leicester City home
A mess. The over-sized white collar and all-gold logos look like they're from completely different kits.
3. Chelsea third
It's easy to think that Adidas shot themselves in the foot here because it's hard to imagine anyone making a 'Sesame' gold kit with black and orange trimmings look any good.
4. Newcastle United third
We all know the elephant in the room here. Either the shirt is a pretty boring and dull template with little to no evocation of Newcastle as a city or club, or it's a shameless wink and a nod to the new owners that can't help but make everyone feel uncomfortable.
5. Wolverhampton Wanderers third
You're only ever going to sink or swim when it comes to any sort of clothing that's salmon pink. You can gather what we think has happened in this instance from its placement...
6. Southampton home
We promise that we're not picking on Southampton, but once again, Hummel seem to have over-egged the pudding when it comes to the pattern work. The random Etch-A-Sketch lines in the white sections, married to the clunky sponsor, really tanks this design.
7. Chelsea home
We dislike the collar, you dislike the collar, your nan's cousin's dog-sitter probably dislikes the collar.
8. Crystal Palace away
Maybe this is a reach, maybe, because there's actually a lot we like about this shirt with the red, white and blue of Palace always popping. But the crayon-scribble vertical stripe has already become a punchline that we struggle not to chuckle at.
But what do YOU think?
You vehemently disagree, don't you? Well, ladies and gentlemen, that's the beauty of football kits.
Somebody's idea of a fashion masterpiece is somebody else's vision of glorified toilet paper, so don't panic if you're absolutely appalled by Arsenal's away shirt and want to break the bank for Southampton's home kit.
And with plenty of Premier League strips still hidden under lock and key ahead of the big kick off on August 6, don't be surprised if the most gorgeous and stomach-churning designs are yet to hit the shelves.
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Either way, you can rest assured that we'll be ready and waiting to give you the full breakdown as we eagerly anticipate the 202/23 Premier League season and everything that comes with it. Game on.