Manchester City concluded a frantic January window with the £50m addition of Porto midfielder Nico Gonzalez. Read on for our analysis of Nico Gonzalez' Man City shirt number.
The recent 5-1 demolition City suffered at the hands of rivals Arsenal further underlined the Citizens' need for midfield reinforcements, with Mateo Kovacic and Bernardo Silva unable to cope with the Gunners' intensity.
Why Gonzalez been has given 14
Gonzalez had a few options when choosing his first Manchester City squad number.
Given Pep Guardiola's preference for smaller squads, it is no surprise that fairly in-demand numbers such as 12-15 were all available, despite fellow new signings Abdukodir Khusanov, Vitor Reis and Omar Marmoush getting their picks before him.
Gonzalez' choice of 14 is likely based on his wearing of the number during his only full senior season at boyhood club Barcelona, back in 2021/22. He made 37 appearances for the Blaugrana as a 19-year-old.
The 23-year-old then joined Porto in summer 2022 to further his development with regular first team football, where he wore the 16.
Perhaps he'd have taken the 14 in Portugal if it were available too, but long-term Porto backup goalkeeper Claudio Ramos has had that shirt since 2020.
Manchester City have strong links to Catalonia, none more so than manager Guardiola, who was almost certainly a huge factor in his signing.
Other notable City players with 14
The Spanish under-21 international will be the first City number 14 since his compatriot Aymeric Laporte left in summer 2023. Other previous holders of the shirt include Wilfried Bony, Javi Garcia, Roque Santa Cruz and Jo.
Gonzalez will be hoping to replicate the success of Laporte in sky blue. During his time in Manchester, Laporte won six Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and, of course, the Champions League.
Those who came before Laporte? Less so…
Elsewhere in the Premier League, the most iconic 14 of all is of course Thierry Henry, but we think there's another player Gonzalez will be more eager to emulate.
That player is Xabi Alonso, who wore the 14 shirt for five successful seasons at Liverpool. The legendary midfielder liked the number so much, he wore it for seven of his nine seasons even after leaving the Premier League.
