The key free shirt numbers and who could inherit them

Matt Stead 20 Jul 2021 6:53 AM

Most clubs have at least one important squad number free for new signings to inherit. Arsenal are among a few with plenty of spots to fill.

ARSENAL
4 – Last held by William Saliba; could be inherited by Ben White

8 – Last held by Dani Ceballos; could be inherited by Ruben Neves or Manuel Locatelli

10 – Last held by Mesut Ozil; could be inherited by Emile Smith Rowe

ASTON VILLA
1 – Last held by Tom Heaton; could be inherited by Emiliano Martinez because Arsenal are silly

8 – Last held by Henri Lansbury, could be inherited by Morgan Sanson

BRENTFORD
9 – Last held by Emiliano Marcondes; could be inherited by Ivan Toney

10 – Last held by Said Benrahma; could be inherited by Kristoffer Ajer if he turns out to be a William Gallas enthusiast

11 – Last held by Ollie Watkins; probably won’t be inherited by Glen Kamara if we’re honest, for a couple of reasons

BRIGHTON
1 – Last held by Mat Ryan; could be inherited by Kjell Scherpen

3 – Currently held by Ben White; could be inherited by Marc Cucurella

BURNLEY
Sean Dyche has obviously filled every shirt number from 1-11 in exactly the right way: keeper at 1, right-back at 2, left-back at 3, centre-halves at 5 and 6, central midfielders at 4 and 8, wingers at 7 and 11 and centre-forwards at 9 and 10. The next available spot is Robbie Brady’s 12.

CHELSEA
Thomas Tuchel is a similarly good lad, although he has central defenders at 2 and 4 with central midfielder Jorginho at 5. And Ross Barkley has misleading seniority at 8. The next available spot is Willy Caballero’s 13.

CRYSTAL PALACE
3 – Last held by Patrick van Aanholt; could be inherited by Victor Nelsson

6 – Last held by Scott Dann; could be inherited by Marc Guehi

10 – Last held by Andros Townsend; could be inherited by Eddie Nketiah or Reiss Nelson

Andros Townsend

EVERTON
3 – Last held by Leighton Baines; could be inherited by Denzel Dumfries

11 – Last held by Theo Walcott; could be inherited by Philippe Coutinho

LEEDS
8 – Last held by Vurnon Anita; could be inherited by Nahitan Nandez or Okay Yokuslu

10 – Last held by Ezgjan Alioski; could be inherited by Raphinha

LEICESTER
5 – Last held by Wes Morgan; could be inherited by Wesley Fofana or Ryan Bertrand

7 – Last held by Demarai Gray; could be inherited by Patson Daka or Boubakary Soumare

LIVERPOOL
2 – Last held by Nathaniel Clyne; could be inherited by Kylian Mbappe because Trent Alexander-Arnold bloody loves the spirit of 66

MANCHESTER CITY
1 – Last held by Claudio Bravo; could be inherited by Ederson or Zack Steffen but they seem palindromically happy at 31 and 13 respectively

4 – Last held by Vincent Kompany; could be inherited by Antonee Robinson apparently

10 – Last held by Sergio Aguero; could be inherited by Harry Kane or Jack Grealish

MANCHESTER UNITED
Jadon Sancho will either have to sweet talk and wait out Edinson Cavani for the 7, or assume the responsibility of Roy Keane and Michael Carrick’s 16. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has filled every other key number. The next available spot is Chris Smalling’s 12.

NEWCASTLE
Joelinton has switched to the 7 in a move which allows Callum Wilson a deserved upgrade to the coveted Newcastle 9, but Steve Bruce has otherwise got his business in order. The next available spot is Florian Lejeune’s 20.

Joelinton