How long until the Spaniard dons the blaugrana once again?

[Off The Post]

Former Newcastle hitman joins a list of United legends

Those who expected Michael Owen’s new Manchester Utd squad number to be in the high double digits were given a shock yesterday, as the Fit & Healthy Charismatic striker was rewarded with the highly coveted No7 squad number.

Yes, despite admitting that he “didn’t exactly set the world alight in the last year or so” in his first official Utd press conference, Owen will now sit beside George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona, David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo on the list of owners of the iconic shirt.

In many ways, the decision is a good one: it will give the 29-year-old striker a much-needed confidence boost, and a bloody good reason to keep himself off of the injury table. However, Alex Ferguson’s declaration of faith in the former England star is a double-edged sword, as it will almost certainly put a great deal of pressure on his shoulders. Some might even have the audacity to argue that a man who has scored once every 214 minutes in the past two seasons is not a strong candidate for such a hallowed garment.

So kids, is Owen worthy of the No7 shirt? Perhaps a winger like Nani or Valencia would be more suited to it? Maybe arguing the toss about squad numbers is futile as it has absolutely no bearing on performance? Let us know your thoughts below…

If only Rio had managed to reach the light switch before the picture was taken

The Manchester Utd official site is now taking pre-orders for the new 2009/10 home kit, and they appear to have published a picture of Rio Ferdinand sporting it.

They’ve kindly turned off the lights to keep the £42.99 garment covered up until the glitzy kit launch next week, but our friends at Republik of Mancunia have used some Photoshop witchcraft to bring it out of the darkness:

The wonky club crest and startling similarity to the current strip makes The Spoiler believe this may be a red herring. We hope it is anyway - we quite liked the Jose Bosingwa monobrow prototype design.

Brazilian could inherit the hallowed squad number

While the British press are preoccupied with the Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid transfer saga, our Spanish friends seem to believe Los Blancos have eyes for only one man: Kaka.

According to the front page of Marca, the Brazilian has already been promised the number five shirt by likely Madrid president Florentino Perez. The squad number should be available, as Fabio Cannavaro is likely to depart in the summer.

Before Cannavaro, Madrid’s number five was worn by Zinedine Zidane. Therefore, if Kaka arrives in the summer, he will be the third consecutive Ballon D’or and FIFA World Player of the Year winner to wear the number.

Hammers’ new shirt deal likely to upset star

Last night, West Ham announced a new shirt sponsorship deal with SBOBET.com, said to be worth around £2m for 18 months. The good news for Hammers fans is that the club will happily exchange the current shirt for the updated one free of charge.

The news probably won’t go down so well with Matthew Etherington - donning the logo of a betting company probably isn’t the most healthy option for a recovering gambling addict.

Keeper’s hesitance to wear shirt more than once causes a kerfuffle

Now for a slightly bizarre story from today’s edition of the Spanish newspaper Marca (who were, incidentally, the media ringleaders when Real Madrid started sniffing around Ronaldo).

Apparently, Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas has only taken three jerseys to Austria/ Switzerland - one for each match of the group stage. If his side reach the quarterfinals, new shirts will need to be sent to him from his homeland, but the current Spanish transport strike would make this impossible. Hence, Marca are suggesting that the indefinite strike - which has been called over soaring fuel prices - will affect Spanish team selection if it continues past June 21 (the date of Spain’s first potential quarter-final match).

Quite why they couldn’t (a) fly the shirt over or (b) go and buy one from any sporting goods store in Austria/ Switzerland or (c) put one of his qualification stage jerseys in the wash, remains a mystery.

[Marca]

NBA forward unnecessarily thrilled about receiving free garment

American netball fans are currently engrossed in the NBA Finals, where Kevin Garnett’s Boston Celtics are attempting to throw more balls into some small elevated hoops than the LA Lakers. As a reward for his outstanding defensive performances this season, Garnett was treated to a personalised shirt courtesy of Europe’s second most successful team.

Even though it’s a small gesture for a well paid sportsman, it’s great to see Garnett react with childlike excitement. It’s probably the same bounding enthusiasm that Jermain Defoe expresses when he bursts open the doors of Chinawhite to see a gaggle of scantily-clad Big Brother rejects. Bless.

[Thanks to the dreamboats at Pies for the find]

Obtain instant ball skills and a transvestite hooker addiction with this brilliant name generator

Due to a lack of coordination and a general preference for showering alone, I never made it as a professional footballer. So here’s the next best thing. Some genius has created a Brazilian shirt generator - simply stick in your name and a number, and you’ll have the perfect nickname for use by peers, family and co-workers. “Ryildo, your mum is on the phone again,” is already a popular catchphrase in this office.

It’s also acceptable to pass the time by imagining the crazy names England stars would go by if they played in yellow - John Terry is ‘Teca’ and Wayne Rooney is ‘Wayniano’.

Click here to get started.