Who should be the next England captain?

England are looking for a new captain after the FA stripped John Terry of the captaincy.

It’s not a surprising turn of events considering the legal issues he has been involved in recently.

This has lead to a debate over whom should be the next England captain.

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The FA have stripped John Terry of the captaincy because he has a poor public image. The latest incident only adds to other issues that have happened in the past, which has made Terry look like he wasn’t the sort of person who should be leading the England national team.

Terry is without doubt a great leader on the pitch but at the moment I don’t think it’s right to have him as captain of England. His form has suffered recently and he hasn’t been his usual reliable self. It could be a blessing in disguise that he is no longer captain.

Important

I really don’t know how important a captain is in modern day football. In the old days a captain used to pull people around and organise but in modern football that happens less. The game in general has lost its leaders.

It’s very rare that you see a captain on the pitch shouting orders. The captain used to be the man who was the managers eyes and ears on the pitch. However the game has evolved and the captains role in the team doesn’t seem as important.

The role of England captain is still a prestigious role and is a big honour for most players. I still think that England players would be proud to be captain of their national side.

Candidates

The two frontrunners seem to be Steven Gerrard and Scott Parker at the moment. Both have had experience of captaining clubs and have a wealth of experience between them. There are other candidates but those two seem to be favourites at the moment.

Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand has ruled himself out of the captaincy race. That doesn’t surprise me considering the fact that he has struggled for fitness in recent months. There is also the fact that Rio’s brother Anton is involved in the Terry legal case. Ferdinand may not even want to feature alongside Terry in the England team.

Manchester United striker and talisman Wayne Rooney has also been talked about as a potential captain. Rooney has the passion and the leadership skills. He leads by example and shows an incredible desire to win. Unfortunately his temperament lets him down and gets him into trouble.

Even goalkeeper Joe Hart has been linked with the position. The 24 year-old has stated that he doesn’t think that he is the best candidate for the job. He is relatively inexperienced at international level and is appearing in his first international tournament.

Hart is a honest and intelligent guy, who in the future will probably make a great leader. He seems to have the ideal temperament for a captain. However I just don’t think he is ready.

Two

I can’t really see past Steven Gerrard for the position. Gerrard is the sort of player that leads by example on the pitch. He has the experience of leading Liverpool for numerous years and is seen as an iconic player.

Scott Parker is a natural leader and another intelligent guy. At West Ham he allegedly used to help with the team talks under former-boss Avram Grant. The only problem with Parker is that he is inexperienced at international level and isn’t a guaranteed starter for England.

Team

At the moment I don’t think that the England captaincy is that much of an issue. Successful countries at international level don’t put that much importance on the captaincy. The likes of Germany and Spain have been successful without putting a great importance on captaincy.

Maybe its time for England to place less importance on the captaincy and more importance on the team as whole being successful.

Who should be the next England captain?