Three Liverpool players that might don legendary jersey numbers in the upcoming campaign

James Milner and Naby Keita are anticipated to replace Roberto Firmino when he departs Anfield this summer.

There are still a number of important aspects that could have an impact on the deals Jurgen Klopp is able to close as Liverpool begins to lay out their transfer strategies for when the market reopens.

Due to the significant financial costs involved, Liverpool decided against pursuing long-time target Jude Bellingham this summer. Instead, the club will try to overhaul the engine room by making multiple additions in that position. Potential replacements include Ryan Gravenberch, Nicolo Barella, and Mason Mount.

Who departs Anfield before the following season will determine who else comes in. Roberto Firmino has stated that this will be his final season wearing the fabled red shirt, and it may well turn out to be a transitional period as James Milner and Naby Keita are among the players expected to replace him.

If so, Liverpool will have to reassign four legendary team numbers for the upcoming season. Firmino (9), Keita (8), and Milner (7) presently wear three highly prized jerseys, while Sadio Mane gave up the number 10 jersey last summer. Here are three potential replacements for them from the present group:

After a promising 18-month run at Anfield, Diaz is finally healthy and prepared to intensify his quest for a regular berth in the starting lineup. He faces competition in that area from players like Nunez and Gakpo, and his fellow strikers can also be in the running for a shirt number increase. Before joining the Portuguese team, Diaz wore the number 10 jersey during his final season with Junior FC and the number 7 for FC Porto.

Gakpo, who was acquired from PSV during the January transfer window, resisted the urge to take the number 10 jersey that Mane left behind when he moved to the Bundesliga last summer. The Netherlands’ star has worn all three of those numbers throughout his international career, so it’s possible that he has his sights set on 7, 8, or 9 instead. Gakpo’s desired number 11 jersey at PSV belongs to Mohamed Salah, hence he will eventually be unable to obtain it this summer.

Possibly the candidate to wear the fabled number 9 shirt? As was already established, Firmino will leave that behind when he accepts a new challenge the next season, and Nunez preferred the squad number during his two seasons with Benfica, scoring 48 goals. Nunez has scored 15 goals in all competitions during his first season at Anfield, so emulating Robbie Fowler, Ian Rush, and the others could give him the boost he needs to continue his goal-scoring success.

Naturally, any new additions will need to be taken into consideration in this situation, with the numbers 7 and 8 shirt (perhaps) being reserved for new center midfield hires. Trent Alexander-Arnold has played for Liverpool all of his professional career, but he may decide to alter his number now that he is playing in a hybrid position. There may possibly be more recent graduates hiding out, such Harvey Elliott (19), Curtis Jones (17), and ground-breaking Stefan Bajcetic (43).