“Must have massive c*****s”, “Shows the self-confidence” – Chelsea fans delighted as first-team star chooses John Terry’s iconic No. 26 shirt

Chelsea fans have reacted positively to the news of young defender Levi Colwill being handed the No. 26 squad number ahead of the 2023-24 football campaign.

The Blues have officially released the squad numbers for their upcoming season, with a couple of first-team stars being handed new numbers.

One of them is the highly-rated Colwill, who will now wear the famous No. 26 shirt, previously worn by club legend John Terry.

The 20-year-old left-footed centre-back is expected to play a key role in Mauricio Pochettino's side next season, after having spent the last season on loan at Brighton and Hove Albion.

He also recently put pen-to-paper on a new six-year deal at Stamford Bridge, with an option to extend by a further year. Ahead of the new season, Colwill will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of club legend Terry, who is widely regarded as one of Chelsea's all-time greatest players.

Chelsea fans were excited by the news of Colwill taking up the iconic No. 26 shirt. One fan said that the youngster's decision to take up the jersey shows his level of self-confidence.

It will be interesting to see how Cowill will perform in his first season with the senior squad at Chelsea.

Which other Chelsea first-team stars got new squad numbers ahead of next season?

The Blues have confirmed their squad numbers ahead of the 2023-23 football campaign, which gets underway this week.

Cobham graduate Colwill has been handed the No. 26 shirt previously worn by club legend Terry. Enzo Fernandez and Mykhailo Mudryk have been given the #8 and #10 jerseys, respectively.

New signing Christopher Nkunku will don the #18 jersey while Senegalese striker Nicolas Jackson has opted for the #15 shirt, previously worn by another club legend Didier Drogba.

Other notable mentions include the likes of Robert Sanchez (#31), Noni Madueke (#11), Axel Disasi (#2) Lesly Ugochukwu (#16), Andrey Santos (#20), Malo Gusto (#27) and Raheem Sterling (#7).

About the author

David is a European and international football journalist at Sportskeeda. An Economics graduate, he boasts a work experience of around 5 years, working as a writer at Opera News Hub Nigeria, a radio presenter at Green FM Umuahia, and an analyst at Kaftan TV Abuja. His time as an anchor and a pitch-side commentator in the Higher Football League Cup (HiFL) competition in 2019 is one of his proudest professional achievements.

David started his journey as a football fan after watching the 2002 FIFA World Cup with his father. He’s a Chelsea supporter at club level, and his favorite manager is Carlo Ancelotti because of the Italian's numerous achievements across a host of European teams. Lionel Messi is the one true G.O.A.T for him and unsurprisingly, his most memorable FIFA World Cup moment is Argentina's glory in 2022. According to David, Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe are on course to replicating Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo's iconic rivalry in the future.

David’s football knowledge and excellent communication skills aid him to connect with readers in the simplest way possible via his articles. He makes it a point to watch matches to gain first-hand information of events and only follows renowned journalists to ensure accuracy of information. When not writing, he loves playing FIFA.

Know More