In what was quite an unusual midseason friendly fixture, Barcelona debuted their new Nike third shirt in a charity match against Manchester City at the Camp Nou in front of 91,062 fans, with all proceeds going to Fundacion Luzon, a research charity for the nervous system disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).
No sooner had Barcelona unveiled their new third shirt for the 22/23 season from Nike they were wearing the kit for a charity match with Premier League side Manchester City, who also turned out in their third strip. The friendly fixture was put on to aid the fight against ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), still an incurable neurodegenerative disease, and it was an entertaining affair all-round, with the 91,062 fans in attendance at Camp Nou treated to a goal fest, with each team sharing the spoils in a 3-3 draw.
The shirt itself looked the part, with the grey base being more prominent than in some of the promotional shots, where it looked almost white. But there was no mistaking the shade in the game last night, and it’s the perfect base for the prominent presence of the Cross of Sant Jordi. Albeit with the obvious inclusion of blue, the shirt brings back memories of the similarly Nike-produced Inter Milan away shirt from 07/08, and that’s no bad thing.
2022 marks the 30th anniversary of the awarding of said Cross by the Government of Catalonia to FC Barcelona in recognition of its contributions to the betterment of society and its leading role in the promotion of sport, as well as its values in relation to sport, civic duty, and solidarity, so it was rather fitting that it debuted in a charity match.
“I would like to thank FC Barcelona and Manchester City for their commitment and sensitivity to our cause. I also want to thank everyone who bought a ticket, and everyone who donated via the row zero initiative. I would like you to know that everyone from the ALS team - here on the pitch with me – want to keep living and enjoying life,” stated Juan Carlos Unzué, the man behind the match, who took a half on each bench.
There was also the debut of Barca's new accompanying prematch shirt, which combined the three colours of the third shirt in an eye-catching graphic, displayed by the players ahead of the action.
Interestingly, Barca's three goal scorers were three players whose futures at the club are uncertain, in De Jong, Aubameyang and Memphis Depay, while Julian Alvarez, Cole Palmer and Riyad Mahrez registered for the visitors.
Pick up the Barcelona 22/23 third shirt from 1 September at prodirectsoccer.com
