September 03, (THEWILL) – Returnee striker Cristiano Ronaldo’s shirt number for English Premier League side Manchester United, which had been the last part of his deal that remained shrouded in uncertainty, has been revealed after Ronaldo was handed the famous number seven shirt on Thursday.
The reason it took a while was because the number seven shirt in the club roster was assigned to the Uruguayan veteran Edinson Cavani. The forward even wore the number when he made his first appearance of the season on Sunday against Wolverhampton Wanderers, which they won 1-0.
But, on Thursday, United officially confirmed on their website that Cavani had volunteered to give the number up. This allowed the club the opportunity to assign the number seven shirt that Ronaldo had made famous and almost synonymous with his name, back to the Portuguese.
In its place, Cavani decided to go for a number 21 shirt as it is the number he wears on the international stage for Uruguay, which makes the transition a smooth process for both players.
The famous number seven shirt has a legendary backstory in the Old Trafford lore. Some of the best names in the red half of Manchester have come through with that number on their backs just beneath their names. The number belonged to names like George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and David Beckham.
The 36-year-old was 18 in 2003, when he arrived at Old Trafford under Sir Alex Ferguson and he wore the 7 shirt with honour and esteem. In so doing, Ronaldo helped to add to the legacy of the storied number at United.
The record-setting goal-scoring machine bagged 118 goals in 292 appearances for the Red Devils to establish his status and led the charge to a UEFA Champions League trophy in 2008, the same year he clinched his first of five Ballon d’Ors.
When he dropped the number in his move to Real Madrid the following year, it became somewhat of a curse at Old Trafford for anyone who tried it for size. Michael Owen and Antonio Valencia wore it in the years immediately following Ronaldo’s exit, before 2014 when it was assigned to Angel Di Maria.
Recently, Di Maria courted controversy with some sections of the fanbase. The Argentine, who lasted just one year at United, claimed he “didn’t give a s**t” about the number before it was quickly pointed out that it could not be a factual claim as Di Maria had it tattooed on his arm.
In the years after Di Maria switched to Ligue 1 side Paris Saint-Germain in 2015, the pair of Memphis Depay and Alexis Sanchez picked up the responsibility of the number seven shirt but failed to live up to the high reputation the shirt commands.
In the 2020/2021 season, Cavani arrived at Old Trafford on a free transfer to pick up the number and, for the first time since Ronaldo’s departure, gave the shirt a good-enough respectability once again.
The 34-year-old found the back of the net 17 times in 39 appearances in his debut year at Old Trafford, with consistently good performances and crucial goals that kept Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side challenging on all fronts. It was the basis for the extension of his contract at Old Trafford in May.
As the shirt returns to the inimitable Ronaldo, United fans will be ecstatic given the knowledge of what Ronaldo can still conjure with his feet and his head for some years to come.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
