A new Premier League campaign brings a host of new shirt numbers at West Ham United, from Nayef Aguerd to Edson Alvarez, while Callum Wilson joins some pretty famous company at the London Stadium.
On Thursday evening, with a week to go until Graham Potter’s team travel to Wearside and face newly-promoted Sunderland in their top-flight curtain raiser, the Hammers confirmed which players will be wearing which number when the season gets underway.
Nayef Aguerd has taken the number five jersey, moving up from 27.
After Real Sociedad decided against signing the Morocco international permanently, and mooted moves to Roma, Juventus, Marseille and Bayer Leverkusen failed to materialise, Aguerd looks likely to stay at West Ham United and compete with Max Kilman for the left-sided central defensive role in Potter’s three-man backline.
Forgotten man Maxwel Cornet takes 22 after Luis Guilherme nabbed his old number 17 jersey.
Ollie Scarles trades in 57 for 30, meanwhile. Scarles was named West Ham’s Young Player of the Year in May, and is now rewarded with a new kit more befitting his first-team role.
In an announcement published by the club’s official website, meanwhile, the Hammers have now confirmed which shirts Edson Alvarez and new signing Callum Wilson will be wearing on Potter’s watch.
West Ham United confirm Callum Wilson’s shirt number as Michail Antonio departs
Alvarez, returning late after helping Mexico win the CONCACAF Gold Cup earlier in the summer, is given the number four shirt worn last season by Paris Saint-Germain loanee Carlos Soler.
Alvarez was previously the club’s number 19.
For all of you who care about this kind of thing, a defensive midfielder in the number four jersey feels pretty satisfying. The Hammers faithful might not be quite so pleased to see Callum Wilson inherit Michail Antonio’s number nine jersey, however.
The former Newcastle striker arrives to much controversy after an injury-hit final few years at St James’ Park. Some supporters may have been hoping to see the nine remain vacant, perhaps to be filled later in the window by a more exciting, much younger centre-forward.
Instead, Wilson joins Dean Ashton, Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernandez, Andy Carroll, Jermain Defoe, Tony Cottee and more in the number nine club.
Other changes see Kilman move from 26 to three. Wilson’s fellow summer additions Kyle Walker-Peters and El Hadji Malick Diouf, meanwhile, have worn two and 12 respectively throughout the pre-season tour of the USA.
But which numbers remain vacant? And which numbers could still be taken before the window closes?
Mads Hermansen could be West Ham’s new number one when he joins from Leicester City
There is a noticeable lack of a ‘number one’ on the graphic posted by West Ham’s official Twitter page.
Alphonse Areola appears destined to start the new season with 23 on his back. Does this mean Mads Hermansen will follow in the footsteps of Lukasz Fabianski, Rob Green, David James and Shaka Hislop?
West Ham are set to sign the Leicester City goalkeeper on a cut-price £18 million deal.
Numbers 13, 14, 16, 18 and 19 are also yet to be claimed.
Harvey Elliott wears 19 for Liverpool, but recent reports suggest that West Ham cannot afford the £40 million-rated Premier League champion. Elliott is now being heavily linked with RB Leipzig.
The Bundesliga outfit have £65 million burning a hole in their back pocket with Benjamin Sesko agreeing to join Manchester United, while Xavi Simons may yet still join Chelsea.
The sale of Mohammed Kudus to bitter rivals Tottenham Hotspur leaves his old 14 shirt vacant. West Ham haven’t had a number 16 since Mark Noble’s retirement, meanwhile, and are yet to fill the jerseys donned most recently by Danny Ings [18].
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