Who wore number 31 in football?

Players don’t often seek this kind of numbers; they usually are just handed out or are what’s available.

Sead Kolasinac

Sead Kolašinac is a professional footballer who is known as a left-back for Premier League club Arsenal and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Born in Germany, Kolašinac represented them at youth international level, before making his senior international debut for Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2013.

Kolašinac is regarded as a versatile defender who can slot into all defensive positions as needed. At Schalke 04 II, he was deployed mostly as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. Schalke 04 head coach Jens Keller used Kolašinac mainly as a left-back. During his time in England, defensive errors became a major point of criticism for the defender.

Jan Zamburek

Jan Žambůrek is a Czech professional footballer who is known as a central midfielder for Premier League club Brentford. He is a product of the Slavia Prague academy and has been capped by the Czech Republic at youth level.

Malang Sarr

Malang Mamadou William Georges Sarr is a French professional footballer who is known as a defender for Premier League club Chelsea. He has also represented France at youth international level. An academy graduate of Nice, he scored on his senior debut in 2016 and made over 100 appearances for the club.

Andy Lonergan

Andrew Michael Lonergan is an English professional footballer who is known as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Everton.

Lonergan is a former England U21 international and is also eligible to play for the Republic of Ireland. After starting his career at Preston North End, Lonergan soon established himself as a first-choice goalkeeper and won Preston’s player of the year award in both the 2008–09 and 2009–10 seasons.

Ederson

Ederson Santana de Moraes, known as Ederson, is a Brazilian professional footballer who is known as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Manchester City and the Brazil national team.

Ederson started his career at São Paulo in 2008 before joining Portuguese side Benfica one year later, where he would spend two seasons. In 2012, he transferred from Ribeirão to Primeira Liga side Rio Ave and became a regular starter there. He rejoined Benfica in 2015 and was assigned to the reserves before debuting for the first team, with whom he would win four major titles in two seasons. For the 2017–18 season, Ederson joined English club Manchester City for £35 million and became the most expensive goalkeeper of all-time in terms of the nominal value of pound sterling at the time of his transfer. He went on to win the Premier League and EFL Cup in his first season in England, and won a domestic treble the following season.

Ederson made his senior debut for Brazil in 2017 after previously being capped at under-23 level. He was chosen in Brazil’s squad for the 2018 World Cup and both the 2019 and 2021 Copa América, winning the 2019 tournament.

Ederson has been described as an agile, commanding, and physically imposing keeper, who possesses both physical strength and excellent reflexes and shot-stopping abilities between the posts. He also developed a reputation as a penalty saving specialist during his time with Benfica. However, he is mostly highly regarded for his outstanding distribution and skill with the ball at his feet: his control and confidence on the ball enables him to retain possession and quickly play the ball out from the back on the ground with his hands or either foot – even when put under pressure – or launch an attack with long kicks. Although naturally left-footed, he is capable of using either foot. Regarding his distribution, former Manchester City goalkeeper Shay Given described Ederson as “the best goalkeeper in the world with his feet” in 2018; his range of passing has also led to him be described as a playmaker in the media.

He is also very quick when rushing off his line, and often functions as a sweeper-keeper. Regarded as a highly promising prospect, in spite of his young age, he has already stood out for his decision making, consistency, and composure in goal, as well as his ability to organise his defence, and is also an intelligent reader of the game; as such, some in the sport consider him to be one of the best goalkeepers in the Premier League.

Nemanja Matic

Nemanja Matić is a Serbian professional footballer who is known as a defensive midfielder for Premier League club Manchester United. Starting his career as an attacking midfielder, Matić shifted to a defensive midfielder during his spell at Benfica. He is known for his consistent performances on the pitch and his combative style of play.

Matić began his senior career at Kolubara, before joining Slovak side Košice in 2007. He moved to English club Chelsea for £1.5 million in 2009. Used sparingly during his first spell at Stamford Bridge, he spent the 2010–11 season on loan at Dutch club Vitesse, and in the summer of 2011, he moved to Benfica as part of a swap deal involving David Luiz. He won the Primeira Liga Player of the Year award for his performances in the 2012–13 season. Matić returned to Chelsea in January 2014, for £21 million. He was named in the PFA Team of the Year for the 2014–15 season. In July 2017, he was reunited with former Chelsea manager José Mourinho after signing for Manchester United.

Matić represented Serbia at under-21 level. He made his senior international debut in 2008 and scored twice in 48 appearances. He was part of Serbia’s squad at the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

A left-footed defensive midfielder, Matić’s poise and power, in addition to his in-game intelligence and tactical awareness, have enabled his attacking teammates to flourish. He is often used at a holding position and screens the defence while providing cover for attacking movements. Just before he joined Manchester United, he had a tackle success rate of 75% in 123 Premier League appearances, a higher rate than N’Golo Kante, Ander Herrera, Fernandinho and Jordan Henderson. José Mourinho commented on Matić, “At this moment, he is a giant, not for his size but for the way he plays.” Matić’s qualities have led to comparison to his ex-teammate at Manchester United, Michael Carrick. Prior to joining Benfica, he played as an attacking midfielder, before being shifted to a holding midfield role.

Francisco Sierralta

Francisco Andrés Sierralta Carvallo is a Chilean professional footballer who is known as centre-back for Premier League club Watford and the Chile national team. Sierralta started his career with Universidad Católica in 2015 and then played for Italian clubs in his career.

Robin Knoche

Robin Knoche is a German professional footballer who is known as a centre back for Bundesliga club Union Berlin. Knoche represented Germany youth teams from 2012 to 2015.

Mateo Klimowicz

Mateo Klimowicz is a professional footballer who is known as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart. Born in Argentina, Klimowicz represents Germany internationally.

Faouzi Ghoulam

Faouzi Ghoulam is a professional footballer who is known as a left back for Serie A club Napol, and the Algerian national team. He was born in France.

Riccardo Gagliolo

Riccardo Gagliolo is a professional footballer who is known as a left back for Serie A club Salernitana. Born in Italy to an Italian father and a Swedish mother, he has decided to represent Sweden at international level.