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Aston Villa left spectators of their FA Cup clash against West Ham confused when they were seen wearing an all-black kit.
Villa will host the Hammers in the third round of the iconic competition on Friday night in what is the first match of Graham Potter's tenure in charge of the visitors after the former Chelsea boss was appointed on Thursday.
However, as the action progressed, there was a marked difference in the appearance of the home team.
Instead of the usual burgundy and blue stripe that Unai Emery's team sport for home games, Villa simply wore white shorts with a plain black shirt and black socks.
Villa announced earlier this week that players would wear the special shirt, which has no sponsors, to mark the club's 150th anniversary.
This uniform will only be worn once and has a retro feel, with only numbers on the back of the jerseys, but no names.
Aston Villa wore black shirts for their FA Cup home clash against West Ham on Friday night.
The special and unique commemorative kit is used to celebrate Villa's 150th anniversary.
The black kit is markedly different to Villa's usual home kit and does not feature sponsors.
When announcing the decision, the club explained the reason for this measure, which has led them to “create this historic look.”
“Aston Villa are delighted to announce that they will honor the club's 150th anniversary with the launch of a special commemorative kit,” a statement read.
“With Unai Emery's side hosting West Ham United in the third round of this season's Emirates FA Cup on Friday night, the club will continue its season-long celebration almost 150 years after the first match on record.
“To mark the occasion, players will wear a black kit, inspired by the first kits worn by the club before the transition to our famous burgundy and blue colours.”
They continued: 'In 1878, Aston Villa became the first team in the United Kingdom to put a crest on their playing kit, adopting the Scottish lion rampant.
“The motifs were sourced from Scotland by William McGregor himself and in honor of our club's pioneering spirit, a crest inspired by the one that appeared on those kits has been authentically redesigned from the earliest sources we have.”
As part of the design, Villa's main sponsors Betano and Trade Nation, whose logos are usually emblazoned on the shirt, gave up their branding space for the match.
The commemorative strip also had an additional symbol on the front said to be inspired by the stained glass windows at Villa Park.
The black kit is available to purchase online and in person at the Villa club store.