Edgar Davids: The Story Behind His Iconic 'Number One' Shirt At Barnet

To celebrate Edgar Davids' 49th birthday, we've decided to go back in time and remember when he decided to join League Two side Barnet as a joint-head coach. Why? Because it is non-stop entertainment.

The former Juventus, Barcelona and Inter Milan midfielder was drafted in to help coach Mark Robson mid-way through the season.

Barnet, who were struggling to stay afloat after a series of poor results at the start of the campaign, needed a miracle. Could the world-renowned Davids - nicknamed 'The Pitbull' by former teammates - help them climb the league table?

I mean, the club were predicted to go down before the campaign had even begun. What was there to lose?

Davids came in but couldn't help the League Two side climb out of the relegation zone and in a cruel twist of fate, they went down on the final day of the season after a heartbreaking defeat to Northampton Town.

The following year, however, is when the madness really started to happen.

At the start of the 2013/14 season, Davids decided he would wear Barnet's number one shirt because he wanted to start a trend in doing so. He said: "That is my number for the season. I am going to start this trend."

Of course, the shirt number didn't catch on and Davids became one of the few outfield players to boast the number one jersey.

Just four months into that season, he considered retirement as a player after his third red card of the season.

One of those red card decisions happened during a televised Skrill Conference Premier game against Wrexham. Davids named himself captain and started as a centre back, but it didn't last long. He swung an elbow at former Liverpool defender Stephen Wright and was immediately sent to the stands.

Despite his actions, the player/manager defended himself, saying some of the decisions were 'exaggerated'.

"I am a target but it is OK. I don't think I am going to play anymore because they're taking away the fun." he said after the full-time whistle.

"I want the team to do well. If you look at the red cards, some are definitely red cards and some are exaggerated. It is hard to complete our tasks when a lot of decisions are against you."

Just a month after he threatened to retire, Barnet announced that he had 'resigned by mutual agreement'.

It may have been short lived but Davids' stint at The Hive Stadium was certainly full of drama and entertainment and for that, we thank him.