With Marco Palestra’s shirt number yet to be announced, many Chelsea supporters have been speculating over which one he may pick.
In his first words as a Blue, Marco Palestra noted that Chelsea’s global stature and the vision laid out by new manager Xabi Alonso heavily convinced him.
But for any football fan, the important thing we all want to know is what shirt number will he be wearing?
When it comes to his previous squad numbers, Palestra notably wore number 27 for Atalanta’s senior side, number 2 during his standout loan spell with Cagliari, and numbers 45 and 46 during his development in Atalanta’s youth ranks.
With Marco Palestra officially in the building, does he instantly start over Reece James or Malo Gusto?👀
Malo Gusto’s future may just dictate Palestra’s number
Palestra is yet to be assigned a Chelsea squad number, but what we do know is that number two is currently unoccupied, whilst number 27 is held by Malo Gusto.
Now, Gusto’s future is currently up in the air at Chelsea, with Manchester City and Enzo Maresca desperate to bring him to the Etihad. However, the Blues are holding out for a fee of around £75 million, which at the moment, is deemed to be too steep by the Citizens.
But, the crucial thing is, it seems as if the Frenchman wants to entertain a move.
Marco Palestra’s history with the number 27 shirt strongly suggests it holds a special personal significance for him. He specifically chose the number 27 when he broke into Atalanta’s senior squad for the 2024–25 season, making it his first number in the top flight.
When he secured his loan move to Cagliari last season, he pivoted to the number 2 jersey, but only because Cagliari’s number 27 shirt was already occupied by Joseph Liteta.
This makes Malo Gusto’s potential departure the perfect catalyst for Palestra to reclaim that number 27.
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