Southampton: Saints release new squad numbers ahead of 2020/21

Southampton have revealed their squad numbers ahead of the 2020/21 season and there have been a few changes.

Ralph Hasenhuttl has been moulding his group of players into a team that will hopefully be able to push further towards the top end of the Premier League by May 2021.

Two signings have arrived so far this summer with Kyle Walker-Peters and Mohammed Salisu through the door. One more arrival can be expected as Saints look to replace Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in midfield.

More players who were already at St Mary’s have also emerged as ideal candidates to take roles within the current setup for the long-term.

Notably, Alex McCarthy retains his number one shirt after proving his worth at the back end of last season. However, he has three other goalkeepers to contend with in Angus Gunn, Fraser Forster and Harry Lewis if they all stay at the club for 2020/21.

Full-backs Kyle Walker-Peters and Ryan Bertrand have both moved from higher numbers to 2 and 3 respectively – regularly allocated to the first-choice right and left-back at a club.

After both impressing in the centre of midfield once the 2019/20 season resumed in June, Oriol Romeu and James Ward-Prowse move to 6 and 8 after holding 14 and 16 last year.

Forwards Nathan Redmond and Michael Obafemi also move. The former has changed from 22 to 11 whilst the latter drops to 14 from 20.

New signing Mohammed Salisu picks up shirt number 22 from Redmond, whilst Danny Ings will retain the all important number 9 after a previous campaign where he proved that he is Saints’ key man in attack.

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• Grading the Southampton Transfer Window Part 1: Departures
• It’s time to talk about Gavin Bazunu
• Rain clouds on the horizon? Southampton beat Plymouth Argyle
• A lament for Southampton legend James Ward-Prowse

There are still some room for further senior players to be allocated places in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s group before the start of the season. Fans will be eagerly awaiting further updates on the club’s pursuit of Weston McKennie.

It is no surprise to see the likes of Guido Carrillo, Mario Lemina and Wesley Hoedt not handed a number but Harrison Reed’s exclusion also hints that he may be on his way out permanently soon.

Saints’ squad numbers in full

1. Alex McCarthy

2. Kyle Walker-Peters

3. Ryan Bertrand

4. Jannik Vestergaard

5. Jack Stephens

6. Oriol Romeu

7. Shane Long

8. James Ward-Prowse

9. Danny Ings

10. Che Adams

11. Nathan Redmond

12. Moussa Djenepo

14. Michael Obafemi

17. Stuart Armstrong

18. Yan Valery

19. Sofiane Boufal

20. Will Smallbone

22. Mohammed Salisu

28. Angus Gunn

29. Jake Vokins

35. Jan Bednarek

41. Harry Lewis

44. Fraser Forster