Not 17 or 20 – Rasmus Hojlund Shirt No revealed as player set to get second-choice shirt number at Man United
Rasmus Hojlund will join Manchester United in the near future after the club signed a deal with Atalanta.
The agreement is expected to cost £64 million, with a further £8 million in add-ons. Erik ten Hag’s team will gain an interesting striker option in the form of the skilled forward.
One of the most anticipated aspects of a new signing is the shirt number they will wear at Old Trafford. Mason Mount and Andre Onana, two new acquisitions, have not disappointed in this regard.
The goalkeeper elected not to wear the usual no.1 for the starting goalkeeper, instead choosing for no.24, while the English midfielder has taken up the iconic no.7 shirt.
Hojlund will enter the club as the first-choice no.9, but it’s unlikely he’ll be able to wear that number next season.
Anthony Martial currently wears that shirt, and has done so since Romelu Lukaku departed the club in 2019. He also wore it when he first joined United in 2015, but it was removed when Zlatan Ibrahimovic arrived two years later.
His failure to stay fit has made acquiring a striker a priority this summer. Ten Hag rates him highly, but the manager recognizes that his inconsistency and instability are huge warning flags.
In fact, according to Jamie Jackson of The Guardian, Ten Hag’s worries that he cannot rely on the Frenchman have put his career in jeopardy – albeit it was noted that the manager is impressed with what the player can bring when healthy.
A sale, on the other hand, is less plausible, especially given the razor-thin depth up front. Martial’s presence would, of course, preclude Hojlund from wearing the no.9 shirt, which he wore when he first broke into the team at SK Sturm Graz.
However, another player could depart the club, allowing Hojlund to keep the shirt number he wore at Atalanta.
Fred, a Brazilian midfielder, has ‘no difficulty’ establishing personal terms with Galatasaray, and other teams are interested in his services this summer.
With a midfield addition desired, departures are expected in the coming weeks, and Fred’s departure would free up the no.17 position for Hojlund. That was his winning number in his one and only campaign at Atalanta last term.
