What is '007' in football?

"It started in 2021 after a Sky Germany graphic depicted new Manchester United signing Jadon Sancho dressed in a James Bond-style tuxedo next to the words 'they call me 007 - zero goals, zero assists, seven games'. The England winger had recently completed a 73m move to Old Trafford from Borussia Dortmund following months of transfer speculation. Image source, Getty Images Liverpool's 116.5m summer signing Florian Wirtz is the latest recipient of the taunt, having failed to score or assist in his first seven Premier League games."

"Plenty of Premier League stars have famously had slow starts to life at their new clubs and gone on to be huge successes, including Thierry Henry. It took the Arsenal legend eight games to register a goal back in 1999 and he went on to score 175 Premier League goals and win four Golden Boots in England. Cunha also went '007' at Wolves, but the Brazilian spectacularly turned around his form and scored 33 goals in his three seasons at Molineux."

"The German did however register an assist on his debut in the Community Shield defeat by Crystal Palace in August. Manchester United's Matheus Cunha, who made a 62.5m move from Wolves in the summer, has also achieved '007' status. His 74m team-mate Benjamin Sesko narrowly avoided the same now-dreaded tagline by scoring in his sixth game for the club during a 3-1 defeat by Brentford. Everton's Thierno Barry, who made a 27m move from Villarreal, also has no goal contributions this campaign."

The term 'going 007' labels attacking players who record zero goals and zero assists in their first seven games at a new club. The phrase originated from a 2021 Sky Germany graphic featuring Jadon Sancho captioned 'they call me 007 - zero goals, zero assists, seven games'. Recent Premier League examples include Florian Wirtz, Matheus Cunha and Everton's Thierno Barry, while Benjamin Sesko narrowly avoided the tag by scoring in his sixth game. Several players have recovered from slow starts to become prolific, such as Thierry Henry and Cunha's strong spell at Wolves.

Read at www.bbc.com