Arsenal's club captains in the Premier League era rated and slated: How have the nine Gunners skippers performed in their role?
This is a time of huge change for Arsenal.
The Gunners have appointed Unai Emery as their new manager after saying goodbye to Arsene Wenger - who was in charge of the club for almost 22 years.
But sentiment must be put to one side as the three-time Premier League winners have a lot of work to do this summer.
Arsenal failed to finish in the top four for a second season running and this will be a matter of priority for Emery.
However, before a ball is even kicked in the 2018/19 season, the Spaniard will have to appoint a new club captain following Per Mertesacker's retirement from the game.
Ex-Arsenal forward Kevin Campbell has claimed Aaron Ramsey should be the next captain but it still remains unclear who will be given the armband.
The club has had nine club captains in the Premier League era but how have they managed to perform in their role?
Below you can see talkSPORT's assessment of the men who have led the Gunners from the front in the Premier League era.
Tony Adams – 9.5/10
He was appointed captain in January 1988 aged just 21 and Adams was a real titan of the Premier League too.
The centre-back will always be remembered for his iconic strike against Everton at the end of the 1997/98 season which saw the Gunners win their first Premier League.
He also fought off personal demons during his career which highlights the achievement of remaining captain until the end of his playing career in 2002.
Patrick Vieira – 9/10
The midfielder carried on Adams’ good work and was a great captain as Arsenal reached its golden age.
Vieira led the Gunners in their 2003/04 Premier League winning side which saw them go unbeaten for the entire campaign.
As well as inspiring players around him to perform well, the Frenchman would frequently boss the midfield in matches and who can forget his almighty battles with Manchester United’s Roy Keane?
Thierry Henry – 6/10
Vieira left Arsenal in August 2005 for Juventus so Arsene Wenger needed a new man to inspire a changing Arsenal side and that was Henry.
The striker was the classic lead by example captain, producing some magical moments on a regular basis.
However, Henry led a team in decline and was unable to win a trophy as captain before leaving for Barcelona in June 2007. He will always be loved by the Gunners faithful though.
William Gallas – 4/10
Gallas looked like a great appointment as Arsenal’s new captain in the 2007/08 season. The Gunners looked capable of challenging for the title and they possessed a skipper with experience of winning it with Chelsea.
However, that all fell apart one day at Birmingham where striker Eduardo suffered a horrific leg break.
Arsenal drew the game 2-2 which not only began the demise of their title challenge but also saw Gallas later lose his captaincy in November 2008.
Cesc Fabregas – 6/10
He was Arsenal’s best player for a few years and became the Gunners fans’ favourite son.
But when Barcelona came calling that was too good an opportunity to resist for Fabregas.
The Spaniard did everything he could to try and get Arsenal back to their very best, but he simply did not have enough good players around him so it comes as no surprise he left for his boyhood club in August 2011.
Robin van Persie – 7/10
Fabgregas’ absence caused Van Persie to step up his game.
After showing plenty of potential in his early career, the Dutchman was finally living up to it, winning PFA Player of the Year in the 2011/12 season.
He led by example brilliantly, however, that summer he did what many Arsenal fans would consider unforgivable and moved to Manchester United.
Thomas Vermaelen – 5/10
After that, things did not get a lot better in terms of leadership for Arsenal.
Vermaelen was the obvious replacement for Van Persie, but the Belgian was unable to emulate the same form he showed before being made captain.
He made the move to Barcelona in August 2014 like Henry and Fabregas had done previously but became a squad player and his career has never really recovered since.
Mikel Arteta – 4.5/10
Arteta had all the makings to be a great captain at Arsenal but he simply did not play enough games.
He was appointed ahead of the 2014/15 season, but made just 11 appearances, with his final appearance coming at the end of the campaign.
However, he was still club captain for the 2015/16 season which seems like a bit of an error from the powers that be at the club.
Per Mertesacker – 4/10
Mertesacker had some reasonably good leadership qualities but like Arteta, he did not play enough games in his two seasons (2016/17, 2017/18) as club captain.
The German was actually made skipper as he was recovering from a long-term injury which could be seen as a somewhat questionable move by the club.
May 31, 2018 at 06:09PM Premier League https://ift.tt/2DuDU4v
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