Why does Hull City striker Oli McBurnie wear his socks so low?

You would likely recognize Oli McBurnie from quite a distance. The Hull City striker is 6-foot-2, plays with his shirt untucked and, most notably for this article, often wears his socks rolled almost all the way down to his ankles.

As a fellow Scot, we were normally told to pull up our socks when it was chilly outside. His explanation, however, makes quite a bit of sense.

Why does Hull City striker Oli McBurnie wear his socks so low? — Hull City’s Scottish striker #09 Oli McBurnie and his short socks and shinnies.PAUL ELLIS

When did McBurnie start rolling down his socks?

The habit began during a loan spell at Chester in 2015. McBurnie was still a teenager and the non-league club’s old socks had lost their elastic, meaning he spent games constantly pulling them back up.

Eventually, he gave up and left them down. That day, away to Welling United, he scored his first senior goal in a 3-1 victory.

“And since then I haven’t changed the style,” McBurnie later told Swansea City. “People think I do it to stand out, but it is more of a superstition thing.”

Honestly, if your first professional goal arrives immediately after rolling down your socks, why risk pulling them up again?

Does McBurnie really wear children’s shin guards?

As someone who ended up with a hole in his shin after refusing to upgrade his ‘lucky’ shinguards despite growing too big for them, this question interested me. And he does indeed have this unusual setup, as he explained to The Guardian a few years ago.

McBurnie said he wore “toddlers’” shin guards, the smallest he could find, because normal ones felt unnatural. He also cut the feet off his long soccer socks and wore more comfortable ankle socks inside his boots.

The look may be unconventional, but it complies with IFAB rules as long as his guards provide reasonable protection and remain covered. What began with defective kit has become one of soccer’s most recognizable superstitions, at least for those of us who keep an eye on such things.

You can see McBurnie and his mainly uncovered legs on Saturday as Hull head to Stamford Bridge to face Xabi Alonso’s high-flying Chelsea.