Barcelona new signing could pick legendary shirt number

Barcelona are inching closer to securing the services of Dani Olmo, who will become the club’s first major signing this summer.

The Catalans have reportedly agreed a deal to sign the Spanish international, with the player set to undergo a medical imminently.

Barcelona have plans to unveil Dani Olmo at the Joan Gamper trophy match against AS Monaco on August 12. But before they do, the club must finalise the jersey number Olmo is going to wear next season.

Barcelona’s next number ten?

A particularly interesting scenario could, however, unfold as Dani Olmo has a substantial chance of occupying the iconic number ten shirt next season.

Although the number is already occupied by Ansu Fati, the forward has picked up yet another injury and faces an uncertain future at Camp Nou.

Should Fati leave the club, Olmo will be free to occupy the number ten shirt. Earlier in the summer, it was reported that Barcelona were keen on maximising the economic opportunity by assigning a new number ten next season.

Olmo, to that end, fits the bill perfectly. The Spaniard has ample experience and has proven himself at the highest level of football. Keeping that in mind, he is unlikely to fold under pressure as Fati once did.

Olmo wore the No. 10 shirt for Spain at the UEFA Euro 2024, where he enjoyed great success.

Barcelona, though, must be mindful of their past record of signing ex-La Masia graduates. The likes of Oriol Romeu and Adama Traore have failed to live up to the expectations in the past.

Although Olmo has a considerably higher ceiling, the responsibility of becoming Barcelona’s number ten could weigh on the Spaniard, which is why it is perhaps better to assess other jersey options as well.

Assessing Olmo’s other jersey options

Dani Olmo has donned the number seven kit in the past few years at RB Leipzig. He had worn the same number during his time at Dinamo Zagreb as well.

However, number seven is not an option for Olmo as it is already occupied by Ferran Torres. The same applies to Olmo’s other numbers such as 19 and 21, both worn during his early days with the Spanish national team.

The number 19 kit has been occupied by Lamine Yamal while Frenkie de Jong claims the number 21 shirt. Neither of them, therefore, is a viable option for Olmo.

Apart from these numbers, Olmo had notably worn the number 12 and 25 shirts, the latter of which was worn during his first three years at RB Leipzig.

These numbers are not occupied and are available. However, La Liga rules dictate numbers 1,13 and 25 should be reserved only for goalkeepers.

That said, Barcelona do lack a third goalkeeper, meaning the number 25 shirt could technically be available.

Barcelona also have a series of other vacant jerseys left, including number 14 worn by Joao Felix last season.

Sergi Roberto, Romeu and Marcos Alonso’s departures, meanwhile, have also made numbers 17, 18 and 20 available, though it is unlikely Olmo would consider any of them.

The coming days, therefore, could be interesting as Barcelona look to finalise a jersey number for their latest acquisition.