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Barcelona Officially Unveil New No.7, And It's A Brilliant Choice

Barcelona Officially Unveil New No.7, And It's A Brilliant Choice

Here's the clubs new No.7 ahead of the new season.

Nasir Jabbar

Nasir Jabbar

Meet Barcelona's new No.7.

The club had reportedly held off assigning the jersey to a player with a transfer for Antoine Griezmann believed to be in the works.

However, a deal for the French ace never materialised, as he committed his future to Atletico Madrid.

So, Barcelona have handed the No.7 shirt to Philippe Coutinho.

Image: Barcelona
Image: Barcelona

Barcelona released the following statement after confirming their new No.7:

"Philippe Coutinho arrived last January to bring even more quality to FC Barcelona. After half a season wearing the No.14 shirt, the Brazilian has been handed the coveted No.7.

Throughout Barça's history, this number has been synonymous with great players and now it's his turn.

"The last tenant was Arda Turan, who arrived in 2015 and left the club last season. But before him, the No.7 was worn by such emblematic players as Villa, Larsson, Pedro and, on many occasions, 'Charly' Rexach.

In general, the profile of the players that have worn it are attackers, and brilliant players of great quality such as Coutinho.

"The Brazilian now has the opportunity to continue the legend that accompanies this number, and make the No.7 shine again."

The brilliant Brazilian joined Camp Nou in January from Liverpool for an initial £105 million, which could rise to £142 million.

He subsequently played 18 La Liga games, scoring an impressive eight goals - including some stunning strikes, as Barcelona won the La Liga title and Copa del Rey.

Coutinho in action for Barcelona. Image: PA
Coutinho in action for Barcelona. Image: PA

When Coutinho arrived in Spain, he wore the No.14 shirt but he's swapped jersey's ahead of the 2018/19 campaign and will no doubt be a vital player in Ernesto Valverde's fold.

Meanwhile, the 26-year-old replaces Arda Turan as Barcelona's No.7. The Turkish midfielder left Spain to return to Turkey in 2017.

Pedro, David Vila, Eidur Gudjohnsen, Henrik Larsson, Javier Saviola, Luis Figo not to mention Pep Guardiola, among others, have also donned the iconic number.

Featured Image Credit:

Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Spain, La Liga

Nasir Jabbar is a journalist at SPORTbible. He graduated from Bath Spa University with a BA in Media Communications. He's a combat sport aficionado, and has contributed to MMA websites AddictedMMA and CagePotato. Nasir has covered some of the biggest fights, while interviewing the likes of Conor McGregor, Michael Bisping and Anthony Joshua. He's also an avid Bristol City fan.

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