Joshua Zirkzee reveals his preferred Man Utd shirt number

New Manchester United signing Joshua Zirkzee says he will happily take either the number 9 or 11 shirt after his transfer from Bologna was confirmed.

United announced the Netherlands international's arrival last week for a fee believed to be slightly more than his £34m release clause. He joins the FA Cup holders after playing a starring role in Bologna's surprise qualification for the Champions League.

The Red Devils are yet to confirm their new shirt numbers for the 2024/25 season and the 9 jersey is free after Anthony Martial left on a free transfer.

Rasmus Hojlund arrived last season and took the number 11 and Zirkzee has admitted it is likely to be between him and the Denmark international for who claims the iconic shirt.

He told Supergaande: "That depends a bit on Rasmus Hojlund. He's already there and is also a striker. Number 9 is free, but hey, he has 11, so I imagine he wants number 9 now. In that case I’ll take 11. At Bologna I also had 11, so it doesn't really matter to me."

Martial played with the number 9 on his back from 2019/20 to 2023/24, while modern stars like Romelu Lukaku and Zlatan Ibrahimovic have also claimed the jersey for United in recent times.

23-year-old Zirkzee joins United after scoring 11 Serie A goals in 34 appearances last season, leaving former club Bayern Munich permanently in 2022 after loan spells with Parma and Anderlecht.

He also played for the Netherlands during Euro 2024, making two substitute appearances totalling four minutes in their run to the semi-finals. Zirkzee did not make the initial squad but was called up by Ronald Koeman following injuries to Frenkie de Jong and Teun Koopmeiners.

With attacking stars like Hojlund, Marcus Rashford and Alejandro Garnacho also at manager Erik ten Hag's disposal, fans are fascinated by how United could line up next season.

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