England have confirmed their squad numbers for this summer’s European Championship.
Manager Gareth Southgate confirmed his 26-man squad on Thursday, with the likes of Jack Grealish and Harry Maguire removed from the original training squad.
The Three Lions had a disappointing exit from the tournament on Friday evening, losing 1-0 to Iceland at Wembley after being booed by the home fans in attendance.
But their first match against Serbia on June 16 in Germany will provide another chance for success as they look to secure their first major trophy since 1966.
The shirt numbers were announced on Saturday morning, with some big hitters taking the lower numbers, with one selection potentially giving an indication of what Southgate will look like in Germany.
England and Gareth Southgate have announced their squad numbers ahead of the start of the European Championship
Some big hitters have been assigned low numbers, such as Bukayo Saka (left), who will wear seven
The selection has potentially provided an important hint as to who could start in midfield for the Three Lions
Jordan Pickford has been given the number one shirt for the tournament and remains England’s undisputed number 1, while back-ups Aaron Ramsdale and Dean Henderson will wear 13 and 23 respectively.
Key defenders Kyle Walker and John Stones will carry two and five respectively, while Stones’ likely partner in Maguire’s absence, Marc Guehi, will get six.
Luke Shaw will wear three as he recovers from injury to play a role, while Declan Rice will wear four, Bukayo Saka seven and Phil Foden eleven.
Captain Harry Kane will wear nine, while Champions League winner and Real Madrid star Bellingham will take on number ten.
Perhaps most interesting is the number of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who will wear eight as he battles for a spot in midfield.
The Liverpool man, who often plays in midfield rather than his natural right-back for his country, will go up against Conor Gallagher (16), Adam Wharton (25) and Kobbie Mainoo (26) to play Rice and Bellingham, with his lower number possibly indicating he could be at the front of the line.
Elsewhere, backup full-back Kieran Trippier will again wear 12, while fellow defenders Ezri Konsa, Lewis Dunk and Joe Gomez will wear 14, 15 and 22 respectively.
Ivan Toney has been given his traditional 17 in his first major tournament, with Anthony Gordon at 18, Ollie Watkins 19 and Enerechi Eze 21.
Cole Palmer rounds out the roster wearing the number 24 jersey as he prepares to push Saka into a starting spot.
Alexander-Arnold came off the bench against Iceland as the Three Lions struggled to break through the stiff defense in the capital.
They are likely to face a similar task in their first match against Serbia next week, with Alexander-Arnold’s creativity often cited as a key factor in his transition into midfield for England.
A number of other starting places appear safe, with players like Gordon pushing for selection in the opener in Gelsenkirchen.
Southgate, meanwhile, admitted he was fine with his team getting full-time on Friday after failing to break down a team that failed to qualify for the tournament.
Trent Alexander-Arnold, who regularly plays in midfield rather than in England’s defense, will wear No. 8
(From left to right) Harry Kane will wear nine, Declan Rice four, Jude Bellingham 10 and Phil Foden 11
“I completely understand,” he said. “We didn’t play well enough to keep them excited in the game.
‘We had some very, very good chances that would normally have been cleared, which could have given a different color to the game and obviously affected the opponent’s confidence.
‘But that would have masked some shortcomings that were evident tonight. From my perspective, I learned a lot from the game.
“It does focus the mind on the fact that any complacency about that talent is going to get us this trophy and all we have to do is walk in… that’s not football. You have to be perfect in every aspect of the game to win a game at this level and we fell well short of that tonight and Iceland deserved their win.
‘But I have no problem with the reaction of the supporters. Of course it makes a huge difference to have the fans here with you, but you have to give them enough goal action, you have to play well enough, press and win the ball with intensity to keep them with you throughout the game.
‘It’s not the night we wanted, the performance wasn’t at the level it should be.
‘It’s far from an ideal evening. I’m not going to hide the disappointment, but we have to remain calm because we know what needs to be corrected.’