Morale is high at Old Trafford after Manchester United unveiled their newest signing Mason Mount on Wednesday morning.
The Red Devils forked out £55million to land the England international's signature and pry him away from Premier League rivals Chelsea in the process. Mount spent his entire career on the books of the Blues, so for him to up sticks to a direct competitor has sent shockwaves through Stamford Bridge.
The 24-year-old was all smiles in the snaps of his first day as a United player, though some were surprised to see that Mount had been entrusted with the iconic number seven shirt, previously worn by some of the greatest to ever grace the Old Trafford turf.
Previous occupants include the likes of George Best, David Beckham and most recently Cristiano Ronaldo, who also wore the number during his first, more successful spell at the club. However, there is one person who may not be overjoyed at Mount's status as the new owner of the seven shirt.
His new team-mates Jadon Sancho and Alejandro Garnacho had both been tipped to take on the number at varying points, with the former in particular the subject of speculation regarding the shirt for some time. Sancho was reportedly first promised the jersey back in 2020 when United were trying to sign him from Bundesliga giants Borussia Dortmund.
Premier League odds and betting tips
However, the deal failed to go through that summer and United eventually signed Edinson Cavani in the meantime, opting to give the number seven shirt to the Uruguayan.
HAVE YOUR SAY!Should Mount have been given the number seven shirt at United? Comment below
When Sancho arrived the following summer, Cavani refused to give up the jersey despite the fact that then-manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer had used the number seven shirt to try and persuade the England international to join 12 months prior.
To add insult to injury, Cavani did end up sacrificing the number seven shirt, but for Ronaldo instead. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner is thought to have spoken with the Uruguay international on the phone before he returned for his second stint and the pair reached an agreement that would see Ronaldo take the number seven jersey.
Mount taking the number represents the third time Sancho has had to miss out, but Garnacho is likely to be equally as frustrated.
For some weeks it had been expected that the young Argentine would be rewarded for his stellar displays last season with a new number, only for Mount's arrival to quash those hopes.
Garnacho himself had only added further fuel to the rumours he was the next in line for the number seven by being snapped with his birthday cake that boasted a huge seven on it. His Instagram name remains 'garnacho7'.
Mirror Football understands that Ten Hag actually offered Mount the number seven shirt while negotiating personal terms with the former Chelsea man. It is believed the Dutchman wanted to send a strong message in relation to how strongly United wanted Mount to sign and the kind of responsibility he would take on at Old Trafford.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
