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Gabriel Jesus handed Brazil's fabled No.9 shirt

Xinhua, August 30, 2016 Adjust font size:

Teenage sensation Gabriel Jesus has been given Brazil's fabled No. 9 shirt for their World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Colombia next month, the country's football confederation said on Monday.

Jesus will wear the number made famous by legendary figures such as Tostao and Ronaldo, who led the Selecao to World Cup glory in 1970 and 2002 respectively.

As expected, Barcelona forward Neymar was allocated No. 10 while Liverpool midfielder Philippe Coutinho was handed No. 11. Jesus' striker partner Gabriel Barbosa, who last week signed with Inter Milan from Santos, will wear No. 21.

Having joined Manchester City for 27 million pounds from Palmeiras earlier this month, Jesus has led many Brazilian football observers to believe the country's long search for a world-class central striker has ended.

The 19-year-old is the leading scorer in Brazil's Serie A championship this year with 10 goals from 15 matches. He also netted three times for Brazil in their gold medal-winning campaign at the Rio Olympics this month.

Brazil will play Ecuador in Quito on Thursday followed by a clash against Colombia in Manaus five days later. Endit