The 2025-26 season has started, and several things are going to change for the FC Barcelona players in this new season. Some of these players will see their status in the team change, while others will see only minimal changes, like that of the number on their backs.
In fact, some of these players have already seen their numbers change, including the defender Pau Cubarsi, who has left his number 2 to take the number 5 that was [vacated by Inigo Martinez](https://semprebarca.com/opinion-farewell-inigo-martinez-barcelonas-captain-without-an-armband/) this summer.
That decision, as [SPORT](https://www.sport.es/es/noticias/barca/2-queda-desierto-dorsal-maldito-121067760) notes, leaves Barcelona’s number 2 jersey without an owner, a shirt traditionally reserved for right-backs but one that has carried a reputation for misfortune in recent years.
Surprisingly, neither Jules Kounde nor Eric Garcia, both candidates for the right-back role under Hansi Flick, opted to claim it. Instead, Kounde continues with the number 23, while Garcia has been assigned 24.
Historically, the number 2 was synonymous with defensive reliability. Yet in the modern era, few players have managed to succeed while wearing it at Barça.
In recent seasons, it has passed through a string of right-backs who struggled to make their mark: Joao Cancelo, who had flashes of brilliance but never convinced during his loan spell; Hector Bellerin, whose return to his boyhood club was short-lived; Sergino Dest, who failed to meet early expectations; Nelson Semedo, who offered only sporadic solidity; and Douglas, a signing that remains one of the most baffling of the last decade.
The last undisputed success story in the number came from Dani Alves, widely regarded as the best right-back in the club’s history. The Brazilian wore the shirt between 2009–10 and 2012–13, following in the footsteps of Martin Caceres (2008-09) and Juliano Belletti, who famously scored the winning goal in the 2006 Champions League final in Paris. Before them, stalwarts like Michael Reiziger and Albert Ferrer gave the number a more defensive identity at the turn of the century.
Go back further, and the list of number 2s is filled with legends of the right-back role. Players like Gerardo Miranda, Tente Sanchez, and Ferran Olivella carried the number in eras when defensive discipline defined Barça’s style.
In the 1960s, the shirt belonged to Julio Cesar Benitez, a charismatic full-back who tragically died in 1968 while still an active player, a loss that cemented the number’s dramatic aura in the club’s history.
Now, almost a decade has passed since Barcelona had a right-back who truly owned the number 2 shirt. With Cubarsi moving on and no one willing to take it up, the jersey once again remains vacant for the 2025-26 season.
The question lingers: is the number 2 at Barcelona cursed, or is it waiting for the next player capable of restoring its mythical status? Perhaps it will be a name from La Masia, such as Xavi Espart, who dares to inherit a shirt that has oscillated for decades between glory and disappointment.