‘Superstitious’ Tottenham star claims Spurs’ jersey number with ‘important meaning’

However, the 30-year-old has decided to return to the Premier League, where he spent two seasons across the capital with Fulham.

Joao Palhinha reveals reason behind choosing No.6 Tottenham shirt

Palhinha comes in as a traditional holding midfielder, a profile Spurs have sorely lacked in recent seasons. He was not immediately given a squad number by the Lilywhites, but on Tuesday, the club officially announced that Palhinha will wear the No.6 jersey for the 2025/26 campaign.

The midfielder also sported the No.6 jersey during his two senior seasons at Sporting CP and for his national team Portugal since 2020. Throughout his career, he has consistently worn shirt numbers featuring the No.6; the Lisbon-born talent won 16 at Bayern and 26 at Fulham. And Palhinha has now decided to take the Tottenham No.6 shirt vacated by Radu Dragusin’s decision to switch to No.3.

Explaining his reasoning for usually choosing a jersey with a ‘6’ on the back, the new Spurs signing revealed that the number marked the date that he lost his grandfather, and the six thus has a special place in his heart.

“I try to choose always a number with a six – sometimes it’s not available but since I started my career, it was a number that I’ve had with me because of my family,” Palhinha told the club’s official website.

“It means a lot for me because of my grandfather… it’s the day that he left our family and since my grandfather died, if I have a look, a lot of important things in my life have happened on this day, with the number six. I can remember my first goal… everything that has been important in my career – not just the career, but in other things as well – most of the days have the number six.

“I’m a bit superstitious and I believe always that this number has an important meaning for me and my family and this is why I want to keep, if possible, the number with me on the shirt.”

Palhinha fills a big void in Thomas Frank’s midfield

In Yves Bissouma, Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall, Pape Matar Sarr, Archie Gray and James Maddison, Thomas Frank has inherited a talented midfield unit at N17. But none of them possesses the traits that Palhinha has, a tough-tackling, physical and no-nonsense ball-winner in the middle of the park.

The Portugal international made a name for himself in England with his dominant performances in Fulham’s midfield across two seasons, topping the tackling charts from 2022 to 2024. His arrival on loan means Frank has managed to address a big hole in his starting XI, and having taken the No.6 shirt, Palhinha means business at Tottenham.