Inspired by Roobenstein‘s video, we take a look at who could be Eddie Howe’s captain next season.
With it seeming ever more likely that Jamaal Lascelles could be leaving St James’ Park in this window, it opens up the debate about who should be our captain next season.
Even if Lascelles doesn’t leave, the back end of the season showed that he’s not necessarily going to be first choice in defence, and that’s before we bring in any new players, so despite Eddie Howe’s praise, it will likely mean we will see a new player taking the arm band.
We saw a few different players leading the team onto the pitch last season in Lascelles’ absence: Kieran Trippier, Callum Wilson, Jonjo Shelvey and Martin Dubravka all lead the team at various points.
For me, there’s only one contender for the captaincy going forward and that’s Kieran Trippier. It was looking very much like he was going to take the lead before he got injured, but that injury didn’t stop him from turning up at every game and doing his bit for the team’s morale.
Against Burnley, while he was warming up along the touchline, we saw Trippier having words with Targett as he lined up to take a corner. Still leading despite not being on the pitch. That’s the kind of character we need in a captain.
Add to this his international experience and league winning exploits in Spain and you have someone with invaluable experience who would be ideal to lead a team looking to march up the league. He would also be a good point of contact for any new signings coming in being someone for them to look up to.