At his new club Real Madrid, Kylian Mbappe will wear the number 9 jersey, marking the first time in his career that the French player will don this number. The unveiling ceremony for Mbappe at Santiago Bernabeu was highly grand, where he announced his choice of the number 9 shirt for his new team, eschewing his familiar numbers 7 (at PSG) or 10 (with the French national team).

In truth, both of those numbers were already taken by Vinicius Jr and Luka Modric, whom Mbappe respects deeply. Therefore, Mbappe opted for the vacant number 9 jersey. Speaking at the unveiling, Mbappe said, “Real Madrid already has a player wearing the number 10, Luka Modric, who is one of the best players in the world. Luka has won the Ballon d’Or and I am happy to be his teammate.”

“The number on my back is not so important to me. I won’t be looking back; I always look forward, towards the opponent’s goal. The number 9 jersey of Real Madrid carries a glorious history, and I am honored to wear this jersey and be a part of Real.”

The most recent player to wear the number 9 for Real Madrid was Mbappe’s compatriot Karim Benzema. After Benzema joined Al Ittihad last summer, the number 9 jersey became available at Los Blancos. In fact, Mbappe’s idol, Cristiano Ronaldo, also wore the number 9 jersey during his early days at Real Madrid.

Fans easily noticed similarities between Mbappe’s unveiling at Bernabeu on July 16 and Ronaldo’s in 2009, from the number 9 jersey to the expressions on their faces and their speeches. Both Mbappe and Real had to wait patiently to finalize the contract. The 1998-born forward expressed that he couldn’t arrive at Real Madrid sooner, as in football, many things can happen. Ultimately, Mbappe is thrilled to officially wear the Real Madrid jersey.