The nineties is often considered the decade when football shirts truly peaked – and with good reason.
In line with a more imaginative era for fashion, kit manufacturers tore up the script and released some truly remarkable designs.
Classic, simple styles were ushered out and replaced with bright colours and bold patterns, creating shirts which will live long in the memory.
Even today, clubs like Arsenal and Chelsea have restyled nineties shirts and used them as inspiration for new designs.
All the while, retro jerseys have been adopted by hipsters everywhere as the must-have fashion accessory of 2020.
Turn up to the Boxpark in Shoreditch, east London, without your best nineties football shirt and there’s a genuine chance you might be denied entry.
Nostalgia is trendy, especially now when memories are the only way to access football.
So to provide your daily dose, here are our favourite Premier League shirts from the nineties…
Michael Owen on his nightmare Real Madrid unveiling
6. Liverpool 1989-91
Liverpool were hoping to win their first top-flight title in 30 years before the coronavirus pandemic halted the Premier League campaign.
It remains to be seen whether the Reds will be able to conclude their inevitable title charge, but for now, their most recent triumph remains the 1989/90 season.
The kit they wore that year, synonymous with Ian Rush and co., has proven pretty popular ever since – and it helps that it’s a beauty.
5. Chelsea away 1994-96
We mentioned the nineties influence in fashion at the moment – and several Premier League clubs opted for throwback kits this year.
Chelsea’s current third kit is a nod to their memorable away strip from the mid-nineties.
Synonymous with Ruud Gullit’s dazzling spell for the Blues, the jersey featured an unusual squared-off collar which has been replicated for the 2019/20 third kit.
But most unusual was the sheer amount of bright orange, unlike any Chelsea kit that had gone before.
It has split opinion over the years, but one thing’s for sure, it perfectly captures the wackiness of nineties football fashion.
4. West Ham away 1993-96
It’s worth pointing out that not every club lost their morals and went for totally bonkers designs.
There was still a place for simplicity, as shown by this classic West Ham away strip.
While everyone else was going all futuristic, the Hammers stepped back into the past with a stunning 1960s-style design.
After all, why not remind everyone that West Ham basically won the World Cup, through hat-trick hero Geoff Hurst, captain Bobby Moore, and goal scorer Martin Peters?
3. Man United away 1992-94
While the design itself is questionable at best, the meaning behind it makes this a memorable kit.
Inspired by the colours of Newton Heath, the club who changed their name to Manchester United in 1902, the green and yellow strip took everyone by surprise.
And Umbro had a fantastic advertising campaign to go with it. There were moustaches and 19th century attire everywhere to pay tribute to Newton Heath.
Green and yellow have since become the colours which represent fans’ protests against the Glazers’ ownership of the club, so don’t expect a kit like this any time soon.
2. Newcastle away 1995-96
You could honestly wear this kit to a Tyneside nightclub and look the business.
Not only do the navy and maroon hoops look great, but Newcastle Brown Ale’s logo actually enhances the kit, too.
Completed with a cool white collar and worn by the likes of David Ginola and Les Ferdinand, this was a kit which deserved success.
Unfortunately, it was worn during the season of Newcastle’s infamous title collapse, when they blew a 12-point lead to Manchester United.
1. Arsenal away 1991-93
A true collectors item, and a worthy winner.
Arsenal’s current away kit has brought the bruised banana strip of the early nineties back to the forefront of our memories.
Nothing symbolises football fashion in the nineties better than this bold, iconic design – you can even buy bucket hats using this Premier League classic.
Getting your hands on the original will cost about £375, according to research by Casumo, so maybe best to admire from afar.
