Dean Huijsen has made Real Madrid's No. 4 feel like more than a squad-number handout. He called it a childhood dream, tied it directly to Sergio Ramos, and pointed back to the kind of shirt that carries more history than most players ever inherit.
Huijsen's link to the shirt
"It was always my dream to play for Real Madrid and wear the number 4. When I was a kid, my biggest idol was Sergio Ramos, who wore the number 4 and was a true legend for Real Madrid and for world football," Huijsen told madriduniversal.com.
He added another detail that makes the story land: "I still remember playing in his cleats, the SR4s, because I wanted to be just like him."
That is the clearest line in the piece. Huijsen is not trying to dress the move up as routine. He is presenting it as something he pictured as a child, then attaching it to a player whose influence on Real Madrid's shirt culture is obvious.
The weight of No. 4 at Real Madrid
Huijsen also drew a line to Fernando Hierro, saying that before Ramos, another legend wore the number and, like him, came from Málaga. He said that makes the shirt feel even more special.
That is a smart way to frame the assignment. It places the number inside the club's own history rather than treating it as a generic centre-back shirt. Huijsen thanked the club, the president, the coach, the players and the fans after being handed it, which fits the tone of someone who understands the size of the gesture.
Real Madrid are not handing him a random shirt in a quiet period either. The club finished second in La Liga in 2025 with 86 points, scored 77 goals and won four of their last five league matches. Huijsen has also played 727 minutes across his last 10 matches, with 7 starts, so this is arriving on the back of real minutes rather than ceremonial PR.
The shirt is still symbolic first, though. Huijsen said he hopes to write his own story and be considered worthy of wearing it. For now, the point is less about declarations of arrival and more about what he has chosen to say about the number itself. He is treating No. 4 as a lineage, not a label.
Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
