João Pedro Takes Chelsea's No.9 Shirt – A Heavy Legacy
Chelsea have locked in their squad numbers for the new season, and one decision jumps off the page straight away: João Pedro has taken the No.9 shirt.
Yes, that No.9 shirt.
João Pedro walks into the storm
At most clubs, the No.9 is a badge of honour. At Chelsea, it has become a running joke, a weight, a warning. Call it a curse, call it coincidence, but the list of strikers who have worn it in the Premier League era is a graveyard of big reputations and short-lived hopes.
Fernando Torres arrived as a superstar and left as a symbol of frustration. Álvaro Morata never escaped the doubts. Romelu Lukaku’s return turned sour. Radamel Falcao, Gonzalo Higuaín, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang – all arrived with pedigree, none left a lasting mark in that shirt.
Go further back and the pattern barely improves. Mateja Kežman, Franco Di Santo, Tony Cascarino, Chris Sutton – none turned No.9 into a success story at Stamford Bridge. Hernán Crespo had moments, but his Chelsea chapter always felt like a missed opportunity. Tammy Abraham came closest to breaking the trend, yet even his promising spell ended with a sense of what might have been. Liam Delap’s brief and bruising stint only deepened the superstition.
Since Jimmy-Floyd Hasselbaink smashed 23 league goals in 2001-02 – 29 in all competitions – no Chelsea No.9 has come close to that standard. Abraham’s 15 league goals in 2019-20 stand as the high-water mark since. Torres did reach 22 in all competitions in 2012-13, but it took him 64 appearances and a long Europa League run to get there, with just 8 goals arriving in the league.
That is the history João Pedro has just walked into.
Superstition or not, he has chosen the heaviest shirt at the club. If he thrives, he rewrites a two-decade narrative. If he struggles, he becomes another name on a list nobody at Cobham wants to extend.
Fofana steps into No.3, Chavarría claims 29
Away from the No.9 drama, there are quieter but significant changes across the squad.
Wesley Fofana has moved into the No.3 shirt, previously worn by Marc Cucurella. It is a number traditionally associated with defensive pillars at Chelsea, and for a player desperate to put injuries behind him and establish himself at the heart of the back line, it feels like a statement of intent as much as a cosmetic tweak.
Fofana’s old No.29 does not stay vacant for long. New signing Pep Chavarría takes it on, a clean slate and a clear marker that he is part of the immediate first-team picture rather than a long-term project parked on the fringes.
Dário Essugo and Tosin Adarabioyo have also picked up fresh numbers, bedding themselves into a dressing room that continues to evolve at speed.
Numbers set – for now
Chelsea’s full list is now public, a snapshot of a squad still being shaped with more than ten days left in the transfer window and only 25 registration spots available.
Some of these choices may yet change if late deals materialise. But one decision feels locked in, symbolically and literally: João Pedro has taken on the No.9.
The shirt that has chewed up stars for more than twenty years has a new owner. Now the question hangs over Stamford Bridge: is this the season the story finally changes?
