Milos Kerkez has revealed the surprising reason he chose the number 6 jersey at Liverpool this season. The 21-year-old believes he has settled in well on Merseyside and is embracing the supreme standards required daily.
The defender joined Liverpool from Bournemouth for a fee of £40million earlier this transfer window and is one of six senior arrivals in a busy summer so far at Anfield. With several significant outings as well, Softfootball understood that there were plenty of squad numbers available for the new signings to choose from.
Kerkez wore no.3 at Bournemouth and held the no.5 during his time at AZ Alkmaar, while he has selected no.11 at international level. None of those were free at Liverpool, so he made the unorthodox choice to pick no.6, a shirt primarily worn by midfielders.
Explaining the decision of choosing the number 6 shirt while speaking with the club media team as seen of Liverpool official website, he revealed that another former Liverpool left-back was his inspiration:
“I have no.6 because of Arne Riiise, and because my brothers chose the number for me,”
“I always let my brothers choose the numbers where I go to different teams.
“They were saying no.6 and I knew Riise had worn that number, so I told them that it is a good number to continue.
“I watched a lot of the Premier League when I was growing up, i used to watch Steven Gerrard, I used to watch Arne Riise, Andy Robertson, and even Cristiano Ronaldo when he played.”
Arne Riise held no.6 for four years between 2004 and 2008, and was something of a cult hero at Anfield, particularly for his thunderous left-foot shots.
Milos Kerkez will hope for similar success in his Liverpool career, which could officially get going on Sunday when the Reds face Crystal Palace in the Community Shield.
In a related news Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah has urged Liverpool fans not to place too much pressure on the new signings before they show their worth on the pitch as the Reds prepare for the new season.
