1 week ago
13
Based on player market values
©TM/IMAGO
David Beckham donning the iconic no.7 for Manchester United and England. The late great Pelé making the no.10 shirt adored in the yellow of Brazil. Zinédine Zidane helping the no.5 shirt fly off the shelves at the Real Madrid club shop. For many football fans, shirt numbers are far more than just a digit. To this day, positions are still described by shirt numbers. 'He's the best no.6 in the league'. 'We need a new creative no.10'. 'We won't win anything without a proper no.9'. These are all phrases that can be heard in pubs and on the stadium terraces up and down the United Kingdom.
Some players challenge the stereotypes of what type of players usually wear certain numbers. Asamoah Gyan donning the no.3 shirt as a striker springs to mind. William Gallas taking the no.10 shirt off of Dennis Bergkamp at Arsenal still makes some fans grit their teeth. And let's not get started on midfielder Jonathan de Guzmán wearing the no.1 shirt for Chievo. Without doubt, some shirt numbers are more iconic than others, but which numbers do the most valuable stars in the Premier League favour right now? At Transfermarkt, we have calculated the most valuable shirt numbers in the English top-flight at this moment in time, based on our market values for all players currently wearing that shirt at their clubs. Some shocks are in store.
Leading the way in the Premier League right now is the classic no.7. All 20 teams currently have a no.7, and those stars combine for a total market value of €771 million. The most valuable no.7s are Arsenal's Bukayo Saka (€150m), Liverpool's Florian Wirtz (€140m), and Manchester City's Omar Marmoush (€75m). In second place comes the iconic no.10. 18 teams have a no.10 at the moment, with the digit reaching a combined market value of €723m. The most valuable no.10 in the Premier League is Chelsea's Cole Palmer (€120m). In third place is the 'striker's' no.9 - eighteen players, Man City's Erling Haaland (€180m) being the most valuable of which, combine for a figure of €665m.
The fourth most valuable shirt number is the no.8, with Martin Ødegaard (€85m) leading the charge for the digit, which has a total worth of €635m. In fifth position, despite not having a single player worth more than €55m, is the no.11 shirt - reaching a total market value of €510m. In sixth is the no.6 with a combined market value of €425m. Seventh goes to the first number outside of the traditional 1-11, and one that may surprise a few - the no.24 shirt has a total market value of €418m led by Josko Gvardiol (€75m), and Amadou Onana (€50m). The no.5 shirt takes eighth position with a total worth of €405m. No.20 is ninth with a €393m combined market value, whilst the no.4 shirt completes the top 10.
