During this week's Champions League matches, we observed that Malmö FF wore their away uniform at home against Zenit St. Petersburg. Here is an explanation for why this was the case.
Kit Clash Avoided
The problem of kit clashes between Malmö and Zenit arises due to both clubs having released very similar home and away shirts.Zenit's home and away shirts are both very light in color, making it problematic when playing away against other light blue and/or white teams. It would have been a good decision by Nike to release a dark Zenit jersey, however this has not been done for 2021-22, resulting in a slight dilemna any time Zenit plays away against a light blue/white shirt.
The problem has been solved by UEFA by getting both teams to wear their away colors. This provides a signaficant amount of contrast between the two sides. Unfortunately it means neither team is able to wear its trademark light blue jerseys.
Previous Meeting
It should also be mentioned that Zenit were unable to wear their light blue home kit at home against Malmö in their earlier meeting (4-0). Zenit wore their white away shirt against Malmö in their navy outfits.
However, we think this was unnecessary. This is because Malmö's navy away jersey does not really clash with Zenit's entirely light blue home outfit. For example, Malmö were able to wear their light blue kits away against Chelsea, who had a darker shade of blue on.
What do you think of Malmö having to wear their away kit at home? Do you think Malmö in light blue against Zenit in all-white could have worked out? Comment below.