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Serie A squad numbers: Dybala doesn’t switch to n.10, number nine still available at Napoli
The importance of the number has diminished in footballing terms, but has raised in terms of marketing: just think about Vieri and Brocchi’s number 32, Ronaldo’s number 9 and today’s CR7. A player and his number can create a proper brand.
However, reading the choices of Serie A players and clubs for the incoming 2016-17 campaign, there are some iconic numbers that have not been picked by some top Italian clubs.
Juventus will be without the number 10 after Pogba’s departure. Dybala had been linked with swapping his number 21 with the number 10, but the Argentinean has decided to keep the good old old number on his shoulders.
However, with Juventus being linked with the likes of Isco and James Rodriguez, Marotta may have already identified the next owner of football’s most iconic shirt at Juve.
Everyone knows Napoli have retired their number 10 shirt that was worn for the last time by Diego Armando Maradona back in the ‘90s. However, the departure of Higuain has left the partenopei with no number 9 either as the Pipita’s heir Arkadisuz Milik has picked the number 99.
AC Milan are without the ‘historic’ number 7, formerly belonging to Shevchenko and Pato, whilst Chievo and Atalanta are the only two Serie A clubs that have not assigned the number one and the number nine.
SERIE A SQUAD NUMBERS: FULL LIST
@MarcoDemi90, translated by Lorenzo Bettoni @lorbetto