Which positions make the best captains?

[Florida Man]

Forwards, Midfielders, Defenders, GKs

I usually thought midfielders make the best captains because they're genuinely all over the pitch, but our most successful periods seem to have defenders as captains.

Johnny Carey, RB, 1945–1953
Roger Byrne, LB, 1955–1958
Noel Cantwell, FB, 1962–1967
Martin Buchan, CB, 1975–1982
Steve Bruce, CB, 1994–1996
Gary Neville, RB, 2005–2010
Nemanja Vidic, CB, 2010–2014
Harry Maguire, CB, 2020–2023 (first trophy since 2017)

Obviously a big gap from Robson and Keane, who were midfielders, and had 20 years in total.

I also saw that Bobby Moore (CB) was a captain of England's most successful period.
Most of Italy's best and longest tenured captains were defenders (Maldini, Cannavaro, Baresi, Bergomi, etc.)

 

[hobbers]

Centrebacks by far

See the game in front of them. Most vocal role on the pitch maybe aside from keeper. But unlike keepers not chained to the goal.

Also keepers tend to have a screw loose.

 

[WakeAndBeek]

Usually someone in the spine of the team - CM or CB. If not, then right back. Never left back though, for some reason. It just doesn’t feel right.

 

[Dr. Dwayne]

A thread from Florida Man!

I usually think midfielders but anyone who is going to be close to the ref at most times is good. So mids and CBs.

 

[SAFMUTD]

CBs all the way. Just not Maguire

 

[KikiDaKats]

CB because they see the whole pitch and not central to play.

 

[mu4c_20le]

Still prefer midfielder. CB takes too long to get to the ref.

 

[Sky1981]

Positions don't make a captain.

A good captain don't need to bark much during a game. They just need to make sure the dressing room is in good and healthy mindset. A great team captain don't always needs to be all around, every one knows what they're doing. It's about setting the standard in the dressing room and training pitch and making sure the rest does their job

As to harrassing the referee, again you don't need to be in your face ref all the time if you know what you're doing. Teams that has their captain yells to the ref all game are probably not a good team anyway

 

[Pronewbie]

Top of the table.

 

[stefan92]

Positions don't make a captain.

A good captain don't need to bark much during a game. They just need to make sure the dressing room is in good and healthy mindset. A great team captain don't always needs to be all around, every one knows what they're doing. It's about setting the standard in the dressing room and training pitch and making sure the rest does their job

As to harrassing the referee, again you don't need to be in your face ref all the time if you know what you're doing. Teams that has their captain yells to the ref all game are probably not a good team anyway

Exactly, it has to matter when you approach the ref, and then the distance is not really relevant. If you moan all the time at the ref you are going to be ignored anyway - at best.

 

[LilyWhiteSpur]

I don’t think most people know what the captain of the team is there for. He is. It there to change tactics. He. It there to scream at players. The captains role for any team is the voice of the team up to the gaffer and then down to the team. He is a spokesperson for the team uo and down. If he sees a player not performing he shakily be talking to them, I’d there is a problem within the team he should be ralkinf up to the manager. So talking about in pitch position, it really doesn’t. It’s not the captains role to explain tactics.

 

[adexkola]

Positions don't make a captain.

A good captain don't need to bark much during a game. They just need to make sure the dressing room is in good and healthy mindset. A great team captain don't always needs to be all around, every one knows what they're doing. It's about setting the standard in the dressing room and training pitch and making sure the rest does their job

As to harrassing the referee, again you don't need to be in your face ref all the time if you know what you're doing. Teams that has their captain yells to the ref all game are probably not a good team anyway

Simply put

 

[Cloud7]

CM or CB I think, although I do wonder if that has been influenced by the players that have been there. When you think of some of the best “leaders” in teams over the years, players like Keane, Ramos, Puyol, Gerrard etc., they have largely been players that occupied these positions. So is it a case of the position or more the sort of players that we would associate with these positions?

 

[noodlehair]

Keane was a great captain, but it wasn't about his position or him charging around tackling people hard, shouting orders, etc. It was more about him stepping in to keep standards up when he needed to. Stuff like charging across the pitch to tell Ronaldo to stop arsing around showboating when we were 4-0 up, getting wound up at people slacking off in training, etc. Put someone like that in a team with a Paul Pogba back in the day and it'd make the Paul Pogba twice the player, because they wouldn't dare start dicking around.

Neville on that list for example...I wouldn't say he was a bad captain, but it really didn't matter who the captain was in that period as there were leaders all over the pitch. Maybe once a season you'd visibly see the standards drop slightly, and even then Ferguson would just bring on Park or something to give the players on the pitch a visual kick up the backside.

 

[rimaldo]

reverse cowgirl. then you’re still able to look up and around and see the play in front of you.

 

[MassVolto]

Fullbacks:
Maldini
Cafu
Carlos Alberto
Zanetti
Lahm
Faccetthi

 

[IRELANDUNITED]

How many centre forwards are captains? Apart from Kane at spurs last season I can’t think of many off the top of my head.

 

[tentan]

Centrebacks for sure

 

[Nicolarra90]

Gorilla keepers like Schmeichel or Kahn.
Then the CB
Then the best of the team

 

[garelo]

Roy Keane captaincy oversees the most succesful period in club's history, we won 4 PL, 1 UCL, 2 FA Cups. You can make argument that Gary Neville was captain in the name only because after 2006 it was Rio and Giggs who took the captaincy until Vidic was appointed as permanent captain in 2010.

Positions don't make a captain.

A good captain don't need to bark much during a game. They just need to make sure the dressing room is in good and healthy mindset. A great team captain don't always needs to be all around, every one knows what they're doing. It's about setting the standard in the dressing room and training pitch and making sure the rest does their job

As to harrassing the referee, again you don't need to be in your face ref all the time if you know what you're doing. Teams that has their captain yells to the ref all game are probably not a good team anyway

So you think Roy Keane was a bad captain then? Cause we all know it was captain and bunch of senior players who ran the dressing room (they were always all around) during Fergie era, and Keane was always the first one to bark when he acknowledged something wrong be it against his teammates or referees.

 

[garelo]

How many centre forwards are captains? Apart from Kane at spurs last season I can’t think of many off the top of my head.

Cantona, Del Piero, Raul, RvP, Benzema, and C.Ronaldo to some extend.

 

[Sky1981]

Roy Keane captaincy oversees the most succesful period in club's history, we won 4 PL, 1 UCL, 2 FA Cups. You can make argument that Gary Neville was captain in the name only because after 2006 it was Rio and Giggs who took the captaincy until Vidic was appointed as permanent captain in 2010.



So you think Roy Keane was a bad captain then? Cause we all know it was captain and bunch of senior players who ran the dressing room (they were always all around) during Fergie era, and Keane was always the first one to bark when he acknowledged something wrong be it against his teammates or referees.

I said : DO NOT NEED TO ALWAYS BARK AROUND

Nothing stops a great captain from barking around, but Keane was a terrific captain because of his own sets of value and standards, not because he barks around and only that.

 

[garelo]

I said : DO NOT NEED TO ALWAYS BARK AROUND

Nothing stops a great captain from barking around, but Keane was a terrific captain because of his own sets of value and standards, not because he barks around and only that.

except Keane WAS ALWAYS BARKING AROUND, nobody was safe from him not even his own managers. so by your own criteria he wasnt a great captain? You joined in 2006 so i guess you watched him in his peak yes?

 

[Sky1981]

except Keane WAS ALWAYS BARKING AROUND, nobody was safe from him not even his own managers. so by your own criteria he wasnt a great captain? You joined in 2006 so i guess you watched him in his peak yes?

https://www.google.com/search?clien...reat+captain&sourceid=opera&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8

Sure, sure.

Go and have a read, find me some article that supports your claim

 

[Oranges038]

The bridge.