WHEN the England team step down from the coach in their new suits you could be forgiven for thinking that they look like sixth-formers on a school trip rather than international footballers.

However, although the prominent logo bears more than a passing resemblance to a school crest, the cut of the suit is firmly up to date in the fashion stakes. The slim shape and narrow, flat-fronted trousers reflect the lean silhouette made popular by the acclaimed menswear designer Hedi Slimane at Dior Homme. Giorgio Armani has proved his tailoring skills by adapting a neat 1960s shape to accommodate Peter Crouch’s height and the circumference of Wayne Rooney’s thighs.

The suit may be stylish but many fans will be disappointed that a Briton wasn’t invited to design it. Worthy British choices could have included Paul Smith, who designed the team’s suits in 1998, Kilgour, the Savile Row tailor whose creative director, Carlo Brandelli, recently won the Menswear Designer of the Year award, or Ozwald Boateng.

Patriotism aside, since the replica suits cost £599, fans may wish they were still being designed by Burton. The Armani label no doubt meets with the approval of David Beckham and the footballers’ wives, but the suit doesn’t look radically different from the high street chain’s 2002 version.

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