Borini and Players Who Wore No. 29 for Liverpool

Liverpool completed their first signing of the summer on Friday by acquiring young Italian striker Fabio Borini. Borini himself requested to wear number 29 for the reds as it is his lucky number. He never wore number 29 before because it was never available. Soccerisma provides the list of Liverpool players who have worn the number since the inception of premier league.

Thompson played his first game for the reds in 1996 and was the first player to wear No. 29 shirt for Liverpool in the premier league. He came off the bench in a 2-0 win versus Gunners. After just one more game the midfielder was loaned to Swindon Town for a short period of less than 2 months. Performing well on loan provided him more chances to play for Liverpool but could not impress much for the merseysiders. In his second season, Thompson switched shirt number to 25. He made 48 appearances for the reds and scored 5 goals in his 4 years stint before leaving for Coventry City in 2000.

The American goalie signed for Liverpool in 1997 and made his first appearance versus Villa in 1998. Friedel also acquired No. 29 shirt for a single season and then switched to No. 19. In his three years spell, Friedel only made 25 league appearances for the reds as a second choice goal keeper in presence of David James and Sander Westerveld. He left Liverpool for Blackburn Rovers on a free transfer in 2000 and currently plays for Tottenham Hotspur.

Wright signed for Liverpool as a teenage boy in 1996 but played his first game for the Anfield club in November 2000. The young defender could not settle well in the squad as he just made 19 appearances for the club. His most notable contribution is the only goal he scored for the reds in the Champions league against Borussia Dortmund. Wright left for Sunderland in 2002 and currently plays for Wrexham.

Another goal keeper to wear No. 29 for Liverpool, the French international Luzi signed for Liverpool in 2002. He made only a single appearance for the reds in a 1-0 win over Chelsea in 2004. Surprisingly that one appearance came in 3 long years that remains the longest period he has spent with a single club. Liverpool released the goalie in 2005 and he signed for a Belgian team Excelsior Mouscron.

The second Argentine to play for Liverpool, Paletta was signed by Rafael Benitez. Paletta played his first game for the club in 06-07 premier league season in a 4-0 victory versus Wigan Athletic. He only made two more league appearances for the reds and after a season went back to his homeland to join Boca Juniors in 2007. Currently Paletta plays for Italian side Parma.

Nemeth was the last player to wear No. 29 shirt for Liverpool before Borini. He signed for the reds in 2007 and was impressive in the reserve team. The youngster was tipped to be an exciting talent for the reds but unfortunately never made a senior appearance. After a few loan spells, Nemeth left Liverpool for Olympiacos in 2010.

Number 29 has not been a coveted number for Liverpool. Not even a single player wearing that shirt for the reds has played 50 league games in the premier league. Borini is an exciting striker who scored 6 goals in 9 appearances for Swansea under Rodgers and later on scored 10 in 26 appearances for Roma. Since 29 is his lucky number, Liverpool fans will be hoping that Borini will prove to be a lucky signing for the reds who will bring the glory days back to anfield.

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