Laporta explains why Barcelona chose white for new away kit

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has been doing his best to explain why the club have opted for a white away kit for the new season.

Images of the new shirt have already been leaked and have raised a few eyebrows as white is obviously the color of bitter rivals Real Madrid.

Laporta has been asked why Barcelona decided to go with white and offered up the following explanation, as reported by Mundo Deportivo.

“I have seen the shirt and the red and blue trims and it looks very good,” he said.

“It’s not all white, eh, it has some Barca details and it’s in memory of one of the first shirts Cruyff wore.

“There are the commercial brands that have studied this very well. When we came back to the club it had already been decided and we believe that a color should not be the heritage of anyone. In any case, it is a ‘Barca White’ color.”

Laporta also rejected any suggestions the plan is to provoke Real Madrid.

“That’s not the intention. It’s an idea, a more commercial theme because we’ve had T-shirts of all colors and the colors are sold out,” he added.

“I remember that there was a moment when we put on red shorts in my first stage as president and I remember that the managers told me that it would be disruptive and it was fine.

“In this white thing you can understand all the reactions but the official shirt will always be the blaugrana and the white one is for cases in which it is not compatible with the opposition, on television.”

The new kit is due to be released later this month and is expected to get its first airing during Barcelona’s pre-season tour of the United States.