We all saw what happened to Terry at the weekend, and
thank God he isn't out for the rest of the season. When it happened I was
pretty certain I was looking at an ACL/MCL injury (in my professional opinion).
It get’s you thinking though, with Terry injured and getting
older, and Lampard now resigned to the bench and potentially off to China /
America, who would the best candidate for captaincy be?? In my opinion, to be
the captain of an entire club, a player must: 1. Be vocal, 2. Command respect
within the squad. 3. Lead by example. 4. Be tactful when dealing with the
referee when a situation gets heated (as situations tend to in football) – a
level head is very important. 5. A continuous starter.
The player that has been used in the past is Cech. I can
understand why, he has become a Chelsea
legend and as such commands a great deal of respect. He is vocal and
commanding, as all great keepers must be, and he does lead by example, as much
as a goal keeper can anyway.
The big problem I have with this though is: he is a goal
keeper. He may have all the perfect personality traits but I for one do not
like goal keepers as captains. I think a captain should be outfield, ideally
in central defence or midfield, because part of their responsibility is to settle
disputes, calm players down sometimes, and lead from the front! I’m sure Cech
would be capable of all this but sadly, his position limits the impact he can
have.
I expect people will disagree with me on this. After all,
some of the greatest managers in the world do! There have been various goal
keeping captains, Casillas and Buffon being the best examples. For me though,
the captain must be an outfielder.
So lets skip to the chase and look at other potential
candidates: Luiz, Cahill, Ivanovic, Mata and (perhaps controversially) Mikel.
I like Luiz more than most Chelsea fans, but as a captain, I don’t think
he would suit us. I don’t think he is particularly vocal (especially for a
centre half!) for a start. My main problem, and I’m sure everyone else's, is
that he is too erratic, makes mistakes, and that is the last thing you want
from your captain.
Ivanovic is a great candidate. He has been a strong
personality in the squad for a long time. Loved by the fans, leads by example,
starts whenever he is fit and he even captains his country (as does David
Luiz). I think he would be capable of dealing with the referee too and on the
face of it, there isn't a great deal you can say against him!
I also think Mata is definitely a candidate for the job. He may
not have been at the club for long, but as one Chelsea fan said to me on twitter, that doesn't Mata (unintelligent pun intended). He’s one of our most charismatic
players and I think he ticks all the boxes. He’s a very mature individual who
has earned not only the respect of the club and the fans, but of the whole
premier league, and although his name isn't thrown into the discussion much, I
can’t see any reason for why he shouldn't be considered.
Mikel, the underdog in this discussion! I’m a big fan. He
gets unjust criticism. I find it hilarious when he makes one little error,
often a small one, and then the opposition score two minutes later and all of a
sudden it’s Mikel’s fault. I think he would fit all of the criteria I outlined
at the beginning of the article, except for one, number 4. I don’t think he is
particularly level headed, and often get’s carried away in the moment. I could
never see him dealing with the referee, so at this moment in time, it’s a no
from me (maybe on day though!).
Cahill. Now here’s a great candidate. Loud, respected, calm
in heated situations, leads by example, and as an added bonus, he’s English!
The problem – he isn’t a regular starter for some crazy reason. Until he
becomes a regular starter, I can’t really see how he can be made captain. The
moment he is though, look no further.
So here is my pick from all of this, the man to fill in for
Terry, and to potentially take over his role in the long run is:
……..(Drum role)…………………… ROSS TURNBULL! cough, sorry. I mean:
BRANISLAV IVANOVIC!!!!!!! At least until Cahill is a regular starter….
(follow me on twitter:@cody_bound)
Carefree & KTBFFH!