NEW SHIRT NUMBERS FOR TWO UNITED FIRST-TEAM PLAYERS

The growing importance of Mason Greenwood and Brandon Williams to the Manchester United first team has been reflected in a couple of squad-number changes ahead of the 2020/21 season.

Earlier this week, it was confirmed that Donny van de Beek would adopt the no.34 shirt at Old Trafford, as a tribute to former Ajax team-mate Abdelhak Nouri.

And now it can be revealed that Academy graduates Greenwood and Williams will be wearing different numbers on their backs when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side kick off the new campaign with a home game against Crystal Palace on 19 September.

Greenwood, who hit 17 goals in his breakthrough season at Old Trafford to earn a first senior England call-up, will switch from the no.26 he sported in 2019/20.

The Bradford-born forward will instead take on the mantle of the no.11 – a shirt which is, of course, synonymous with United’s all-time appearances record holder Ryan Giggs.

Greenwood will become only the fourth Red to wear no.11 in the Premier League era – after Giggs, Adnan Januzaj and Anthony Martial, who returned to sporting the no.9 last summer after the departure of Romelu Lukaku.

Meanwhile, left-back Williams has upgraded from no.53 to no.33 after an encouraging first 12 months in the senior set-up.

Brandon, who is currently recovering from a foot injury which has kept him out of the upcoming England Under-21 internationals, made 35 appearances in all competitions and ended the season as the Reds’ regular left-back after Luke Shaw’s campaign was prematurely cut short.

Williams will now fill the number last occupied by Paddy McNair, who made 27 appearances for the Reds before leaving for Sunderland in 2016.