But it ‘s an authoritative decisiveness for Arsenal, specially given their recent history with the captain ‘s armband, with the likes of Gabriel, Kieran Tierney, Granit Xhaka, Martin Odegaard and Aaron Ramsdale linked with the job.
hera we look at some of the candidates, with Smith giving his verdict on who he thinks could be the future Arsenal captain … Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Arsenal coach Mikel Arteta says the ‘leadership group ‘ will parcel the golf club ‘s captainship following the decisiveness to strip Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the captain ‘s armband .
There’s a leadership group at Arsenal, which buys Mikel Arteta some time. It’s a big decision for Arteta and Arsenal.
Gabriel
The Brazilian has been a major presence at the heart of the Arsenal defense in the last 12 months. He ‘s been a dominate and dependable figure in Mikel Arteta ‘s new-look defense. He ‘s arguably the drawing card of that whole and can regularly be seen organising and cajoling his team-mates, leading for calls for him to be handed the captain ‘s armband. however, could his appreciation of the english speech be an topic ? Since his arrival from Lille in the summer of 2020, his English has improved, and is improving, but is it at the grade required to lead a Premier League side ? ALAN SMITH SAYS: “ I look at Gabriel and he looks like a natural leader to me .
“ He ‘s constantly talking on the slope and Benjamin White would vouch for that. “ I ‘m not indisputable how estimable his english is, but it surely does n’t stop him from chatting veracious through the pit, and his performances have backed up that kind of attitude as well. “ You alone in truth know when you are in the dress room and you are working with them every day on the training grind, but he decidedly looks like he ‘s got the qualities to be an Arsenal captain. “ For me, Gabriel, from what I ‘ve seen this season, he looks the separate and is surely playing the depart. ” Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video recording player
Crystal Palace coach and erstwhile Arsenal master Patrick Vieira says a captain must ‘set the case ‘ after Arsenal stripped Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the captainship .
Kieran Tierney
very early on into his Arsenal career the Scot was tipped as a future Arsenal captain thanks to his superb performances and his battle qualities. He has leadership know in the past, leading both Scotland and Celtic, but will he play enough games to get the Arsenal armband on a full-time basis ? He ‘s suffered his fair share of injury problems during his meter with the Gunners and this season he ‘s had to struggle for his rate with Nuno Tavares, who has featured ahead of Tierney on a number of occasions. SMITH SAYS: “ He ‘s no longer an automatic rifle first base choice of Arteta. Nuno Tavares has played his carnival plowshare of games this season in the absence of Tierney and when the Scot has been fit to play. “ It may be the way that continues with Arteta using Tierney for some games and Tavares for others, which would probably play against his chances of getting the armband. “ Tierney is a very thoroughly character, obviously, but there may equitable be a better option this meter around. ”
Smith on Arsenal’s ‘big decision’ and the importance of a modern day captain…
Sky Sports ‘ Alan Smith :
” People say captains do n’t matter so much these days, but I think they do.
” People hush look towards the captain and he organises things off the airfield. Players are asking what time the meetings are, where are we going, what hotel are we stopping at and unlike bits and bob.
” You have got to lead by exercise and show the right way forward because differently, the discipline of the squad can take a stumble.
” The captainship in this day and age is still a identical key component in football, specially in a young squad like Arsenal ’ randomness.
” It ’ s a big decision for Arteta and Arsenal. ”
Granit Xhaka
The swiss midfielder has all the attributes to be a captain, which is why he has already had the function at Arsenal once ahead. however, it all ended in tears when he clashed with the Arsenal supporters at the Emirates Stadium when substituted in a game against Crystal Palace in October, 2019 when Unai Emery was coach. Xhaka was stripped of the captainship, which led to Aubameyang ‘s date, but could he get another opportunity nowadays ? Arteta regularly states Xhaka ‘s importance to the Gunners, but it would be another bold decision to reinstate him to the captainship, given the history involved. SMITH SAYS: “ Arteta has stated on numerous occasions how important Xhaka is to this Arsenal side.
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“ however, I can not see the Arsenal director turning back to the swiss midfielder for the captainship because of the reaction the decision would get from the fans. “ I think Arteta would swerve that one. ” Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video actor
arsenal head coach Mikel Arteta says it was a ‘painful ‘ decision to strip Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the club captainship .
Martin Odegaard
He may have only been at the club for less than a year but Odegaard has already been singled out by Arteta for his leadership qualities. “ Martin has this capacity to do that with his endowment, taking the testis in moments where others credibly refuse to, but deoxyadenosine monophosphate well with his attitude, his rhythm and the way he presses and puts people under blackmail. ” Odegaard can regularly be heard passing on instructions to his team-mates during games and he surely sets an exercise with his performances. He ‘s besides shown he can lead at external charge after being made captain of Norway at 22. however, has this opportunity equitable come excessively soon for him at the Emirates Stadium ? SMITH SAYS : “ Odegaard has captainship experience with Norway. “ At fair 22 he ‘s leading his national team so that ‘s a very good sign for his leadership qualities. “ however, I think it ‘s barely a snatch early on for him in his Arsenal career and until recently, he was n’t an automatic rifle starter for Arteta. “ so, for that reason, I do n’t think he will be first in Arteta ‘s thoughts. ”
Analysis: Who next for Arsenal?
Sky Sports’ Nick Wright:
It is a bold decisiveness by Mikel Arteta to strip Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang of the captainship – particularly as there are few obvious candidates in the team to assume the responsibility.
Granit Xhaka is a fast darling of the Spaniard ‘s and wide regarded as a leader in the dressing room but it would be enormously controversial to return the armband to a musician who himself was stripped of it under Unai Emery anterior to Aubameyang taking over.
If Xhaka ‘s rollercoaster relationship with the fanbase rules him out, then who else ?
Arteta has repeatedly talked of the need for Arsenal ‘s senior players to lead by model but Alexandre Lacazette is out of contract at the end of the season, while Thomas Partey, although experienced, may be better off focusing on finding human body.
possibly he will opt for Kieran Tierney, who he described as a “ natural drawing card ” and a potential future captain earlier this year, but is the left-back, still only 24, ready for the armband now having been in and out of the side this season ?
Tierney has been at the club longer than others of around the lapp long time, but another choice for Arteta would be to give it to one of his summer signings. He has repeatedly talked up Aaron Ramsdale ‘s leadership qualities and he has been similarly complimentary about Ben White and Martin Odegaard. Gabriel Magalhaes, who arrived a year earlier, may be another option.
Failing that, he could mirror what his mentor Arsene Wenger did when he gave the captainship to a 21-year-old Cesc Fabregas, and hired hand the armband to person like Bukayo Saka. That, though, is identical much an external possibility .
Aaron Ramsdale
Ramsdale has had a huge impingement since his arrival at Arsenal stopping point summer. He ‘s promptly become a cult calculate with the club ‘s supporters after a drawstring of fine performances since coming into the slope in place of Bernd Leno earlier in the season. He ‘s shown enough of quality besides, which suggests he could be an Arsenal captain of the future, but again, it could be excessively early into his career in north London. SMITH SAYS : “ The England goalkeeper has had a bright beginning half of the season, but we ‘ll be able to make much more of an appraisal of him at the end of the season. “ You can see his leadership skills already coming through but I ‘m not indisputable he needs the captain ‘s armband merely yet. “ He ‘s hit the ground running on the pitch and he looks more than felicitous with how things are. “ so, I ‘d keep the status quo with Ramsdale, for now. ”
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Who else could be in contention?
Alexandre Lacazette is in the stream leadership group and took the master ‘s armband in invest of Aubameyang in Arsenal ‘s 3-0 gain over Southampton last weekend. But is he a long-run option ? The french striker is out of contract at the end of the season and could walk away from the Emirates Stadium for free next summer. Ben White is another who has been touted for the role. He is a guarantee originate in this Arsenal team and centre-back has been a traditional position for a captain. But, it is still relatively early on in his Arsenal career and like Ramsdale, Arteta may fair want to let him get on with the job of defending quite than complicating matters with the captainship. You could argue that Thomas Parte yttrium fits the poster. he ‘s one of Arsenal ‘s more experience players and is vice-captain of Ghana. however, things have n’t quite gone to plan for the midfielder since his move from Atletico Madrid so he may be better off focusing on finding some form and consistency. young has been a key character of Arteta ‘s Arsenal reign so far, but burdening either Bukayo Saka or Emile Smith Rowe with leadership seems like an unlikely possibility at this stage of their developments .
William Gallas, Robin van Persie, Laurent Koscielny – among others – and now Aubameyang … Emery named Aubameyang as Arsenal ‘s newfangled captain after taking the armband off Granit Xhaka and Arteta decided to stick with the striker after taking over as director a few weeks late.
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The decisiveness seemed to pay off initially, with Aubameyang leading Arsenal to FA Cup aura in August 2020 and scoring his 28th and 29th goals of the temper in the concluding, but his form dipped after he signed a new long-run condense a few weeks after that. The 32-year-old scored alone 15 goals last season, his lowest total since the 2010/11 campaign, and if his form was not enough of a worry, corrective issues began to arise excessively. Aubameyang kept hold of the armband after his indiscretion against Tottenham last temper, but this has proved a rupture besides army for the liberation of rwanda. The hex of the Arsenal captainship continues.