Lisandro Martinez will wear the No.6 shirt for Manchester United this season, the club has confirmed.
The Red Devils made the announcement on Thursday morning, and the defender could debut his new jersey in this weekend’s double header of fixtures with United facing Atletico Madrid in Oslo on Saturday and Rayo Vallecano at Old Trafford the following day.
A week later and Martinez could make his competitive debut for the club when United face Brighton & Hove Albion in the Premier League on 7 August.
Giving the defender No.6 might indicate how pivotal he is to Erik ten Hag’s plans, even more so given the jersey could have been claimed by Victor Lindelof or Raphael Varane, two players who are likely to compete with Martinez for a starting berth.
Six is a shirt number more traditionally associated with a holding midfielder, although since squad numbers were officially introduced in the early 1990s in the Premier League, it’s centre-backs who have almost exclusively worn it for United.
In fact, of the previous seven occupants, only one has been a midfielder. Below we’ve listed every single player who has held the No.6 for the Red Devils.
1. Gary Pallister
Squad numbers were first introduced in 1993/94 and Pallister was the man who held the jersey as United wrapped up the league and cup double.
2. Jaap Stam
Following Pallister’s departure in 1998, it was his replacement Stam that inherited the shirt number, and in his first season he helped the club win their famous treble.
3. Laurent Blanc
Arriving in 2001, the World Cup winner wore No.6 for a solitary season before taking No.5 the following year.
4. Rio Ferdinand
The centre-back repeated Blanc’s shirt selection and wore No.6 for a season after signing in 2002, but subsequently claimed five for 11 years. Ferdinand even launched a FIVE brand after he retired.