Mason Mount has been bestowed with the legendary number 7 jersey by Manchester United (MU). However, many fans are concerned for him as numerous players have been affected by the "curse" of this shirt number, not just at MU but also at various other renowned clubs.
Stamford Bridge is not an ideal place for attacking players, especially those donning the number 9 jersey. History has shown that Chelsea has had a string of misfortunes with players wearing this number. One of the most disappointing number 9s at Chelsea was Fernando Torres.
Arriving from Liverpool for a hefty price at the time (£50 million), El Nino failed to live up to expectations. In his four seasons, the former striker only contributed 45 goals and 35 assists across all competitions. Following Torres, Radamel Falcao, Alvaro Morata, Gonzalo Higuain, Tammy Abraham, Romelu Lukaku, and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang each took on the number 9 jersey at Stamford Bridge but failed to reach the heights they achieved at their previous clubs.
In the past, Luis Figo and David Villa found success wearing the number 7 shirt at Barcelona. When Villa departed, Pedro somewhat lived up to the expectations while inheriting the number 7 jersey. However, the forward, developed from La Masia, only played for two seasons with the number before joining Chelsea.
In the past decade, Barcelona has signed numerous stars, but whenever they wore the number 7, things seemed to spiral out of control. Arda Turan, Philippe Coutinho, and Antoine Griezmann, one after another, disappointed. Coutinho, in particular, was loaned out to Bayern Munich and Aston Villa before being sold at a reduced price. Currently, Ousmane Dembele wears the number 7 jersey and has made certain contributions to Barcelona's journey to La Liga victory last season.
Earlier, the English press reported that the Red Devils would hand the iconic number 7 jersey to Garnacho, replacing his usual number 49. However, ultimately, this did not happen, and newcomer Mount became the "chosen one." It is a great honor but also a considerable pressure for Mount.
In the past, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, and Cristiano Ronaldo shone brightly with this shirt number, but there have also been failures like Angel Di Maria and Alexis Sanchez. With the responsibility of wearing the number 7, Mount undoubtedly faces immense expectations from MU. The Red Devils hope he can share the creative burden with Bruno Fernandes and become a source of goals from the midfield for the club.
Despite the efforts of Krzysztof Piatek, Fernando Torres, and Andre Silva, none of them succeeded while wearing the number 9 jersey at Milan. Since Filippo Inzaghi's departure, Milan has had nine different players donning the number 9, scoring a total of 29 goals.
This list includes renowned names like Fernando Torres and Gonzalo Higuain. However, perhaps the most disappointing case was Mario Mandzukic. The former Croatian striker joined Milan in the middle of the 2020/21 season but only played 11 games and failed to score in any of them. Currently, Olivier Giroud wears the number 9 jersey at Milan. The French forward is gradually erasing the "curse of the number 9," having scored 32 goals across all competitions in his two seasons at San Siro.
The number 9 jersey at Arsenal has become somewhat "jinxed" since Davor Suker took it on in 1999. The former Croatian striker scored only 11 goals in 38 appearances for the Gunners in the 1999/2000 season. Since Suker's departure, there have beenDespite the underwhelming performances of players like Francis Jeffers, Jose Antonio Reyes, Julio Baptista, Eduardo, and Park Chu-young, there have been a few exceptions. For example, Lukas Podolski and Alexandre Lacazette had relatively good fortunes while wearing the cursed shirt. Currently, Gabriel Jesus has also made his mark with 19 goals in 33 matches since joining Arsenal from Manchester City. If not for injuries, Jesus could shine even brighter.
