Ranking Liverpool's seven Premier League No.7s as Luis Diaz takes iconic shirt
Luis Diaz has become the latest player to take the iconic number seven shirt at Liverpool, with the Colombian winger handed the honour following the departure of James Milner.
The shirt number has a storied history, with its association to Liverpool folklore due to previous incumbents Kenny Dalglish and Kevin Keegan establishing its status as one of the most recognisable in the game.
The image of a white number seven on a red Liverpool shirt is one of the club's most powerful images and recent years have seen a number of different players wear it to varying degrees of success.
Milner has vacated the shirt following eight years of playing with the iconic number on his back, however, he has proved to be one of the more deserving custodians of the shirt, with some previous owners having achieved little compared to the Yorkshireman.
Since 1993, when permanent squad numbers were introduced, seven players have been trusted to fulfil the lofty expectations of wearing the jersey - here, we take a look at how they fared and rank their contributions to the club.
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7. Robbie Keane
Robbie Keane's Liverpool career was one of the most short-lived in recent memory, with the Irishman brought in by Rafa Benitez in 2008 to act as a foil for Fernando Torres. The Reds were one of the leading sides in Europe at the time, and having been a reliable goalscorer for Tottenham for the previous six years much was expected from Keane.
Robbie Keane never clicked at Liverpool ((Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images))However, the boyhood fan of the club never reached the heights expected, and left following seven goals in 28 games in January 2009. The Reds made a loss of £7 million on his sale, with the striker never reaching the same heights of his early career in the years to follow.
6. Nigel Clough
Signed by the Reds in 1993 following Nottingham Forest's relegation from the top flight, Clough was an England international whose name carried with it a certain level of expectation.
Despite scoring twice on his debut, he was playing in a team undergoing a period of transition and was quickly usurped in the club's pecking order by the emerging talent of Robbie Fowler. A brace against Man United in a dramatic 3-3 draw was the highlight of his time at the club, with three seasons yielding just seven league goals before a transfer to Man City in 1996.
5. Harry Kewell
Another player who arrived with a big reputation, but never reached the heights expected, the former Leeds winger spent five seasons at Anfield between 2003 and 2008. His first season at Liverpool was promising, with seven goals in 2003/04 before injuries took a hold on the Australian.
Harry Kewell spent five years at Liverpool ((PAUL ELLIS/AFP via Getty Images))A starter in the 2005 Champions League final, he was withdrawn in the 23rd minute following an injury before watching on as his teammates staged a legendary comeback from 3-0 down to hand Kewell a Champions League winner's medal.
4. Vladimir Smicer
The man who replaced Kewell in Istanbul, the Czech international was a useful utility forward in his time at Anfield. He scored the second goal in the final, with a sweetly struck shot from outside the penalty area to give the Reds real belief that a historic comeback may be possible.
Wearing the shirt between 1999 and 2003, Smicer surrendered the seven shirt to Kewell in upon his arrival, but with his contribution in Istanbul as well as a role in 2001's treble win, he pips the Australian in this list.
3. James Milner
A player who will be remembered fondly for his role in Liverpool's transformation in the past eight years. When he arrived in 2015, the Reds were on a downward trajectory in the final days of Brendan Rodgers' reign, with Klopp's arrival bringing about a change in fortunes.
Klopp was a huge fan of Milner, with his versatility and work-rate marking the veteran out as a reliable platform from which to provide success. Taking on a leadership role within an inexperienced squad, Milner led by example, with his technical qualities also shining under Klopp, becoming the leading assist-maker in the 2018/19 Champions League as the Reds lifted the trophy.
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James Milner won multiple honours at Liverpool ((JAVIER SORIANO/AFP via Getty Images))Purists will say that he isn't a traditional number seven, with the shirt usually reserved for more natural attacking players. However, his contribution to the club is unquestioned.
2. Steve McManaman
After the remarkable success of the 1980s, Liverpool had to rebuild in the early years of the Premier League, with limited trophy success. However, one of the shining lights of this era was McManaman, with the Bootle-born winger becoming a key attacking talent for the Reds, holding the iconic number seven between 1996 & 1999.
His Liverpool career may not have been glittering, but 364 appearances make him the highest appearance-maker on this list and those who watched him in a red shirt will remember the creative talents which saw him make the PFA Team of the Year in 1996/97.
A move to Real Madrid followed in 1999, becoming a key player for Los Blancos as they won the Champions League in 2000 and 2002.
1. Luis Suarez
Luis Suarez is the best Liverpool number seven of the Premier League era ((Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images))Arguably, one of the club's greatest ever players, despite just three years spent on Merseyside. Luis Suarez scored 82 goals in just 133 matches in a Liverpool shirt, with his haul of 31 Premier League goals in 2013/14 nearly guiding the club to the league title.
His highlight-reel from his time at the club is phenomenal, with certain performances, such as his spectacular four-goal haul against Norwich in December 2013, marking the Uruguayan out as an all-time great. Endorsement from 'King' Kenny Dalglish separates him from the others in this list and cements a place in Anfield folklore as their greatest number seven of the Premier League era.
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