All eyes were on the launch of Arsenal’s home kit for the 2025/26 season, with two squad number changes noted.
Ethan Nwaneri will wear the number 22, taking it from David Raya, who has claimed the traditional number one.
The pair were the only two changes to the Arsenal squad’s kit numbers to report, as Myles Lewis-Skelly opted to keep his 49 shirt.
Fans reacted to the launch of Arsenal’s new home kit, celebrating the tradition behind the shirt, which is set to be worn in the final home game of the season at the Emirates.
Vacant squad numbers at Arsenal amid kit launch
Though it was the look of the kit that generated attention, a lot of talk was with regard to how the shirt numbers could be allocated next season.
At present, eight first-team numbers are vacant, with plenty more to be added to the list as the summer transfer window fast approaches.
What is particularly interesting is the history behind two of the available squad numbers, as ten and 14 are there for the taking.
If there were to be any changes within the squad, such would’ve happened now, as Raya and Nwaneri’s swap was revealed, painting an exciting picture ahead of the transfer window.
Sporting director Andrea Berta will be eager to fill the ten and 14 shirts with players worthy of the kit numbers that Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry once wore.
Berta is likely to grant Arteta’s wish of signing a striker in the summer transfer window, with one target being Viktor Gyokeres, whom Arsenal’s sporting director loves.
Gyokeres could arrive and take the number 14, a number that will forever be part of Arsenal folklore due to Henry.
The same goes for the number ten, which is a number favoured by many players in world football.
Alexander Isak loves the number 14 because of Thierry Henry
Though Gyokeres is said to be Arsenal’s top striker target heading into the summer window, he’s not the only forward on Arteta’s radar.
Arsenal dream of signing Alexander Isak, but the Newcastle United talisman’s £150m price tag makes this incredibly difficult.
There could be one thing that the Gunners could use to lure the Swede to the Emirates, however, as with the number 14 vacant, Isak could be tempted to follow one of his idols.
In an interview with BBC Sport, the Premier League marksman was asked where his decision to wear the number 14 came from, and whether it had anything to do with Henry.
“He was definitely one player I liked a bit extra,” Isak responded, as he wears the number for Newcastle and previously did for Borussia Dortmund and the Sweden national team.
The importance of a squad number means more to some than others, but at Arsenal, not many shirts carry as much weight as the vacant 14.
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