Djimi Traore has reacted to Liverpool signing Darwin Nunez by welcoming the striker to the club.
Taking to Twitter, Traore, who won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005, claimed that Nunez was joining ‘the best English club.’
“Welcome Darwin to (the) best English club,” wrote the 42-year-old.
If Darwin can go on to match Traore and lift the Champions League with Liverpool, The Reds will be obliged to make him their record signing.
Darwin’s shirt number evolution
It was a big day for Liverpool yesterday as their new number 27 was unveiled.
There had been some debate over which shirt number the 22-year-old would take. He wore nine most recently at Benfica. But with Roberto Firmino well settled into that, there was no chance of continuing that at Liverpool.
Aside from that, all the usual numbers for a forward player are currently occupied too. Sadio Mane’s number 10 shirt may soon be available, but he’s still clinging onto it for now.
If the latest reports are to be believed, he may yet be around to wear it at Liverpool next season as well.
So, in the absence of any obvious choices, Nunez opted for Divock Origi’s old shirt. Perhaps he was unaware of the Belgian’s hero status at Anfield, but that’s a pretty big shirt to fill.
It’s already the sixth different number he’ll wear as a professional footballer. For Penarol he wore 26, 29 and 24. Nunez took the number 21 when moving to Almeria before having 9 on his back for the last two seasons.
Treading a well-worn path
As time goes on, maybe Nunez will inherit a more traditional number. Of Liverpool’s fabled front three of Mane, Firmino and Mohamed Salah, only the latter has worn the same number throughout his reds career.
Mane initially took on 19 before switching to 10 in 2018. Meanwhile Firmino occupied Salah’s number 11 until switching to his current number in 2017.
Diogo Jota and Luis Diaz may also have eyes on their older colleagues numbers in time.
For now though, expect to see plenty of “Darwin 27” shirts knocking around in Liverpool as the season draws nearer.