NOW PUBLIC: Manchester United has confirmed the shirt number of Joshua Zirkzee

The Manchester United shirt number that Joshua Zirkzee wears has been confirmed.
The decision to take the historic Old Trafford jersey comes after Rasmus Hojlund vacated the number 11 shirt. The Dutch forward has gone on to take the jersey.

Following the recent departure of Rasmus Hojlund, Manchester United has announced that new player Joshua Zirkzee would be wearing the number 11 shirt that was previously worn by Hojlund.

Midway through the month of July, Zirkzee successfully completed his transfer from Bologna, which cost him £36.5 million. He had been instrumental in Bologna’s surprising qualification for the Champions League by finishing in the top five.

The two years that he spent at Bologna were spent wearing both the number 9 and the number 11 jerseys. When it became clear that Hojlund might be ready to swap teams, he stated that he did not care which jersey he was given at Old Trafford.

After joining United from Atalanta for a fee of £72 million, Hojlund wore number 11 during the previous season. However, the departure of Anthony Martial at the conclusion of his contract made the number nine shirt available for the first time in a number of years. It was then that the Dane, who had previously assumed the role at the international level, recognised the chance that presented itself.

After the decision was made regarding Hojlund’s shirt, it appeared to be rather evident what Zirkzee would do.

The history of Manchester United’s No. 11 shirt number, worn by Joshua Zirkzee
The international player from the Netherlands, who began his senior career with Bayern Munich, is presently the most recent player to wear the number 11 jersey at Manchester United. A number of legendary figures, like as Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, and Denis Law, have been seen wearing it in the past, despite the fact that all three of them are mostly recognised for their other shirts.

Beginning in the early 1990s and continuing until his retirement in 2014, Ryan Giggs broke records with 11 jumps on his back. Adnan Januzaj, who was only 19 years old when he received the shirt, and Anthony Martial, who didn’t genuinely want it after being moved out of his preferred number 9, both experienced less success than the other contenders.

Following his participation in the semi-finals of the Euro 2024 tournament with the Netherlands, Zirkzee was not selected to participate in United’s summer tour of the United States. On the other hand, he is currently participating in full training with his new teammates and may make his debut in the FA Community Shield match against Manchester City on Saturday.

The Dutchman, who is 23 years old, was supposed to be a supplementary addition to United’s frontline this season; nevertheless, it is now possible that he will be the one to lead the line in the first few weeks of the season. Due to a hamstring injury that he sustained during the preseason friendly match against Arsenal, it is anticipated that Hojlund will not be available for action until after the international break ends in September.