Why Emi Martinez Has Discarded John Terry’s No. 26 After One Game
After all the hassle of reaching out to John Terry to inquire about wearing his cherished No. 26 jersey, Emiliano Martínez has pivoted toward the No. 1 shirt after just one match.
All 717 of Terry’s senior appearances for Chelsea came with the iconic No. 26 on his back. Without ever being officially retired, it was notable that no player dared to wear that jersey in each of the first five seasons after Terry left his boyhood club. Kalidou Koulibaly felt compelled to phone the retired England international to ask his permission when taking on the digits in 2022—something he received after Terry initially hung up on what he thought was a prank call.
Martínez had Terry as an assistant coach at Aston Villa and quickly reached out to the former defender about the club and his old number. “John was someone I spoke to before I joined, and he said he was over the moon to have me here,” the goalkeeper revealed shortly after completing his summer switch. “The morning I signed, I texted him and said, ‘I’m wearing your shirt, and I’m going to do it with pride.’”
That pride clearly didn’t extend beyond Martínez’s debut.
John Terry was wedded to the No. 26 shirt. / Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images
After shipping three goals in a chaotic victory over Brighton & Hove Albion last weekend, Martínez ditched 26 for No. 1. Rather than any act of superstitution, this was a question of availability.
At the time of Martínez’s debut, Robert Sánchez was still a Chelsea player. The demoted No. 1 belatedly secured a move to Serie A upstarts Como on Deadline Day, which left his jersey number vacant.
As Martínez had hinted, he didn’t have a deep personal connection to the number. “I remember using the 26 on loan a few times with previous clubs,” the former Arsenal goalkeeper shrugged. The No. 23 is Martínez’s preferred choice—he actively gave up the No. 1 shirt at Aston Villa to wear a special set of digits.
“I won all the trophies with the national team with the No. 23,” Argentina’s World Cup winner explained at the time. “[It’s] the day my boy was born. ... I’m really superstitious, to be fair,” Martínez added. “It’s a real special number.”
With 23 already taken by fellow summer arrival Geovany Quenda, Martínez would have to settle for No. 1.
Why Is Emiliano Martinez Allowed to Change Shirt Numbers in the Same Season?
Emiliano Martínez will be rocking a new number this season. / Darren Walsh/Chelsea FC/Getty Images
According to the Premier League Handbook: “While he remains with the club a player will retain his shirt number throughout the season for which it was allocated.”
However, there is the added wrinkle that: “Upon a player leaving a club the shirt number allocated to him may be re-allocated.”
Sánchez left Chelsea on Sept. 1 and the Blues have re-allocated his No. 1 to Martínez. While that may have irked the fans who had already bought their shirts with ’Martínez 26’ on the back, the Argentine had a solution.
Martinez’s Charitable Offer to Chelsea Fans
Chelsea added some much-needed experience. / Vince Mignott/MB Media/Getty Images
As part of the press release to confirm Martínez’s switch, Chelsea revealed that the 34-year-old had personally offered to sign every shirt with his name and the wrong number.
Fans have until Oct. 4 to deposit their jerseys at Stamford Bridge, along with proof of an official purchase, for Martínez to get to work with his magic marker. Should the defending Europa League champion extend his trophy-laden track record in west London, those erroneous Martínez shirts could become a cherished piece of niche memorabilia in years to come.
