Matheus Cunha’s Man Utd Shirt Number—What Will He Wear?

Manchester United have completed the signing of Matheus Cunha for big money.

Matheus Cunha is Man Utd’s first signing of the summer. / IMAGO/Sports Press Photo

Manchester United aim to rid themselves of 2024–25 by overseeing a productive summer transfer window.

Ruben Amorim, despite a tough start to life in England, will be at the helm come the start of next season, and this is the first real chance for the Portuguese to begin building this Man Utd squad in his image. Wing-back Patrick Dorgu was the only signing made in the winter.

There are gaping chasms across this Man Utd squad with a clear-out expected, and Matheus Cunha has been officially confirmed as the club’s first summer signing. The Brazilian has dazzled in recent seasons with Wolverhampton Wanderers and cost the Red Devils an eye-watering £62.5 million ($84.1 million).

Cunha will be a key part of Amorim’s project and should be rewarded with a lucrative shirt number at Old Trafford.

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Matheus Cunha Shirt Number History

The Brazilian took Wolves’ number 10 shirt last year. / IMAGO/Sports Press Photo

Cunha’s senior career started in Switzerland with FC Sion, where he first donned number 70 for the first team and 18 for the U21s.

The playmaker’s first big break arrived soon after shining in the Swiss top flight, joining a burgeoning RB Leipzig side with lofty aspirations. Cunha’s time in Saxony was brief, spending a couple of years with the club before moving on in 2020. He wore 20 with the Bundesliga club, scoring an incredible solo goal against Bayer Leverkusen at the end of his debut season which was nominated for the 2019 Puskás Award.

The Brazilian’s first experience of his preferred 10 came at Hertha Berlin after initially wearing 26. He also got his hands on the number 9 shirt in the German capital before switching back to 10.

Atlético Madrid craved the maverick attacker’s services, signing him from Hertha in 2021. Cunha was handed 19 upon his arrival but became the club’s new number 9 following Luis Suárez’s exit. However, things didn’t work out for Cunha under Diego Simeone, as he struggled to settle as the lone man up top.

He thus moved to Wolves midway through the 2022–23 season, impressing during his loan spell before the West Midlands club made the move permanent in the summer. Cunha started out with 12 at Molineux but was named their new number 10 ahead of the 2024–25 campaign.

Cunha earned his first Brazil cap off the back of his move to Atléti, and he’s since earned 13 caps for the national team. The forward has donned 7, 9, 19 and 21 for his country.

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Man Utd Available Shirt Numbers

Marcus Rashford is the current number 10 at Old Trafford. / IMAGO/Action Plus

Now Cunha’s arrival has been confirmed, it’s expected that the forward will wear the number 10 jersey.

Marcus Rashford is the current incumbent of that shirt for Man Utd but he looks destined to leave the club permanently this summer after impressing on loan at Aston Villa during the second half of 2024–25. It’s unlikely that the Englishman will still be at Old Trafford by the beginning of next season and Cunha looks certain to inherit his shirt number.

The 19 Cunha has previously worn is also available, while Antony, another player likely to leave this summer following a loan stint, currently holds the 21 shirt.

14, 27, 28, 29 and 30 are also vacant.

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