To be handed the No. 7 shirt at Manchester United is an honour.
George Best, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo all wore the number during their time at Old Trafford.
And following in the footsteps of those four players has proven pretty difficult for the most recent wearers of No. 7.
Angel di Maria and Memphis Depay have both tried, and failed, to be worthy successors. The pressure to live up to those United greats is simply too much for some.
It is thought that Antoine Griezmann will take the vacant No. 7 should he arrive in the summer. It will certainly be in United’s best interests to ensure that the next player to wear the number can honour its prestige.
Honour
Beckham spoke of the honour he felt upon being handed No. 7 by Sir Alex Ferguson in his autobiography My Side.
“When I first got into United’s first team as a regular, my squad number was 24,” Beckham said, per World Soccer. “The following season I was given the number 10 shirt. That meant a great deal to me: Denis Law and Mark Hughes had both worn it before me.
“Maybe the history that went with the number was why I scored so many goals wearing it. I remember, though, the summer we signed Teddy Sheringham, the boss actually took the trouble to phone me when I was away on holiday in Malta to tell me he was taking that squad number off me. No explanation, no alternative and no argument.
“I was devastated, trying to work out what I’d done wrong. Then, a month later when we turned up for pre-season training, he had a new shirt ready: the number 7. The boss handed me Eric Cantona’s squad number. The surprise of that honour stopped me in my tracks.”
Ronaldo's reaction to being handed No. 7
It’s always interesting to learn how players reacted upon receiving the No. 7 shirt. And Ronaldo insists it came as a surprise to him when Sir Alex told him he would be wearing the number.
Speaking at a promotional event, the four-time Ballon d’Or winner said he had been set to wear No. 28 - his number at Sporting Lisbon. That was until Ferguson told him: "Look, I would like you to wear No. 7,” per ESPN FC.
Ronaldo, who joined Real Madrid in 2009, added: "I was surprised because I knew of all the great players who had worn that jersey."
Indeed. And he’s the last of them.