Arsenal starlet Ethan Nwaneri handed goalkeeper’s shirt number with chequered Gunners history
ETHAN NWANERI has been given a new shirt number ahead of the 2025/26 season.
The 18-year-old was one of the shining lights in a disappointing season for Arsenal, who are on course for a third-straight second-placed Premier League finish.
Nwaneri has worn the number 53 shirt this season, in which he’s scored nine goals and provided two assists in 36 appearances in all competitions.
But he’ll don a different number for the 25/26 campaign after one of his team-mates vacated their current number.
Nwaneri will be Arsenal’s new number 22 next season, taking the shirt from goalkeeper David Raya.
Raya has ditched his old number to officially become Arsenal’s number one, which was left vacant following Aaron Ramsdale‘s move to Southampton last summer.
The Emirates faithful will hope the number 22 shirt will bring Nwaneri the same good fortune it did Invincible Gael Clichy.
The shirt, however, has had a chequered past in recent years, being worn by flops Yaya Sanogo, Denis Suarez and Pablo Mari.
Nwaneri’s fellow teenager Myles Lewis-Skelly won’t be following his suit and changing his number for the 2025/26 season.
The 18-year-old – who has been one of the club’s star performers this season – will continue to wear the number 49 shirt next season.
Nwaneri has played a whopping 1,303 minutes of football in his breakthrough season at the Emirates.
But manager Mikel Arteta is wary of giving the teenager too much game time too soon.
The Spaniard said of the Gunners’ 2-2 draw with Liverpool last weekend: “There are moments where players are used more and less.
“He’s played a lot, probably more than anybody expected for sure.
“In the last few games, it’s been because of the games and the context, we decided not to play him in those matches.
“It can change very quickly.”