Manager Mauricio Pochettino sets deadline for naming new Chelsea captain
Mauricio Pochettino has the task of picking Chelsea’s new captain ahead of the new season. The captain’s armband lied with Cesar Azpilicueta since Gary Cahill’s exit in 2019.
But after the Spaniard’s move to Atletico Madrid earlier this summer, the honour of captaining Chelsea is up for grabs, and fans would feel there are a few straightforward contenders.
Poch, however, is tight-lipped about the situation. Speaking ahead of our friendly game against Brighton & Hove Albion tomorrow in the Premier League Summer Series in the USA, the Argentine tactician said, via Football.London:
“I won’t name a captain until Liverpool [Premier League opener]. I need to see the reaction, how they react on and off the pitch. It is time to assess everyone.”
Trevoh Chalobah captained Chelsea in our 5-0 Florida Cup final win against Wrexham earlier this week. That gave nothing away because there is surely no chance he captains the team permanently just yet.
Who next?
In fact, it is still not clear if he is a starter in Poch’s squad as of now. Even after Wesley Fofana’s ACL injury, one would imagine two of Thiago Silva, Benoit Badiashile and Levi Colwill will start in a four-man backline.
This isn’t to discredit Chalobah’s development. The Englishman is truly on course to become a Premier League star. But right now, it would make way more sense to hand the armband to a more experienced player.
Thiago Silva (38) would be at one extreme end of that measuring scale. Reece James (23) would be at the other. Raheem Sterling (28) is also not a bad shout but the two names mentioned before him have been here for longer than he has.
And there is just that extra bit of sense in making a defender or a central midfielder your captain in such circumstances. They play a huge chunk of the game with the ball in front of them so they can see and command their teammates at a better rate. Of course, that doesn’t mean attackers can’t or should be captains.
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But there is a reason defenders or central midfielders are more often than not the go-to positions for managers when looking for a designated leader. Enzo Fernandez would be a surprise pick but one we can’t rule out just yet.
