Emi Martinez Switches to No.1 at Chelsea After Rapid Start

Emi Martinez has been at Chelsea barely long enough to find his parking spot, and he’s already on his second shirt number.

The Argentina goalkeeper arrived from Aston Villa in a £7.5 million deal, walked straight into the team, pulled on the No.26 and helped deliver a wild 4-3 win over Brighton on debut. It looked like the start of a new Stamford Bridge story wrapped in an old, familiar number.

Then the transfer window slammed shut, Robert Sanchez left for Como on deadline day, and everything changed.

From Terry’s 26 to the classic No.1

Sanchez’s loan move left the No.1 shirt vacant – the traditional keeper’s jersey, the one that carries a different kind of weight. Martinez didn’t hesitate. Chelsea confirmed on Saturday that their new signing has switched from 26 to 1, upgrading his squad number just days into his Blues career.

The decision comes with a nod to the supporters caught in the middle of the swift change. Fans who already bought a ‘Martinez 26’ shirt from the official club megastore or website can take it back to Stamford Bridge, with proof of purchase, by October 4. In return, they’ll get it personally signed by the new Chelsea No.1.

It’s a rare, early twist in a relationship that had started with heavy symbolism.

Martinez had made a point of asking John Terry’s permission before taking the No.26 – the shirt that became synonymous with the former captain’s two-decade spell in west London. The keeper had worn 26 previously while on loan and spoke openly about what it meant to follow in Terry’s footsteps.

“John was someone I spoke to before I joined, and he said he was over the moon to have me here,” Martinez said. “The morning I signed, I texted him and said, ‘I’m wearing your shirt, and I’m going to do it with pride’.”

Terry did more than approve. He championed the signing.

“If I had the choice of any goalkeeper in the world, he would be right at the very top for me,” the former Chelsea skipper said. “We signed him at Aston Villa from Arsenal and he was unbelievable. The confidence he shows, the way he trains, the influence he had on a group of players, the mindset is incredible.”

For Terry, the connection went beyond numbers. He loved that Martinez shared his obsession with clean sheets.

“He’s taking the 26 shirt, yes, we’ve given the green light,” Terry said. “You know why? Because he loves keeping clean sheets as much as I did when I wore the 26 shirt.”

A number that never settled

Since Terry’s retirement, the 26 has felt like a shirt searching for a long-term owner. Kalidou Koulibaly took it on but stayed only briefly. Levi Colwill wore it for a single season before opting for the No.6, another classic defender’s jersey.

Martinez’s rapid move away from 26 underlines that sense of restlessness around the number. The romance of inheriting Terry’s shirt has given way to something more conventional: the new first-choice goalkeeper wearing No.1.

And make no mistake, with Sanchez gone to Como, Martinez is exactly that. First choice. Undisputed. The man trusted to bring calm to a chaotic Chelsea back line that somehow turned a 4-3 thriller against Brighton into three points and a minor heart attack for everyone inside the stadium.

Arsenal away, and a familiar twist

The timing of the change adds a sharp edge to what comes next. Martinez is set to wear his new No.1 for the first time when Chelsea travel to the Emirates Stadium to face Arsenal – the club where he once wore 26 in north London and spent years fighting for a chance that never fully arrived.

Now he goes back as Chelsea’s main man, in the most traditional goalkeeper’s shirt of all, with Terry’s public backing and the club built around his presence between the posts.

The number on his back has changed. The expectations have not.