The changing of the guard at Liverpool will soon happen following a trophy-laden spell for Jordan Henderson, who is now confirmed to leave the club after 12 years of service.
The England international will swap Merseyside for the Middle East to link up with Al Ettifaq. Its first-ever head coach, Steven Gerrard, passed over the armband to his compatriot in 2015. Since then, Henderson, Jurgen Klopp, and co. have masterminded a magnificent period of sustained success for the Reds. The Reds are expected to receive around £12 million for the 33-year-old's sale.
Takes a look at five players who could succeed Henderson as Liverpool's new skipper for the 2023–24 campaign.
Virgil van Dijk
Undeniably the most obvious pick, Virgil van Dijk has proudly sported the Netherlands armband since 2018. He is also no stranger to leading Liverpool out onto the pitch. The 32-year-old already forms Liverpool's six-man leadership group and has become the third-choice captain behind Henderson and former vice captain James Milner. Milner's move to Brighton & Hove Albion also leaves another vacancy to be filled.
Whenever Henderson and Milner had previously been absent for whatever reason, Van Dijk unsurprisingly assumed the responsibilities as skipper and has sported the armband in every competition for Klopp's side, excluding the Community Shield, including the FA Cup and Champions League semi-finals versus Manchester City and Villarreal, respectively, last season.
Thanks to his explosive start on Merseyside, Klopp entrusted Van Dijk with the captaincy less than a year after his arrival from Southampton. While his powers may have waned last season, the towering Dutchman will surely be the number one pick.
Alisson Becker
Another accomplished member of the defensive pack, Alisson Becker would be a highly popular choice for captaincy for Liverpool fans, many of whom cannot and will not stop singing the goalkeeper's praises for his crucial contributions season in and season out.
Alisson was never bestowed with the armband during his Roma tenure, but he captained former club Internacional on one occasion—a goalless draw with Chapecoense in 2016—and he has conducted pre-match duties in the center circle with Liverpool too.
Indeed, the Brazil international captained the Reds in Champions League affairs against Porto and AC Milan during the 2021–22 campaign. After a 2-0 win over his former opponent, Alisson labeled his brief stint with the armband a "pleasure" and an "honor."
Alisson has not led the Reds out onto the field since. However, the 30-year-old remains a prominent member of Klopp's leadership group, and few would bat an eyelid if he became Henderson's successor.
Mohamed Salah
As Van Dijk said, Egyptian wing king Mohamed Salah already captains his country. The 31-year-old could very well be a wildcard option for skipper duties on Merseyside despite having been snubbed for the role in a 2020 Champions League dead rubber versus FC Midtjylland.
With Henderson, Milner, Van Dijk, Alisson, and Georginio Wijnaldum previously vying for the armband, Salah has yet to experience captaining Liverpool. However, the former Chelsea and Roma man has already done the armband justice at the international level.
Since being named Egypt's captain in 2021, Salah has led the Pharaohs to the final of the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations. However, they soon suffered penalty shootout heartache at the hands of Sadio Mane's Senegal, who also ended Egypt's dreams of 2022 World Cup qualification.
Nevertheless, Salah has undoubtedly thrown his hat into the ring for the Liverpool armband, which has not been sported permanently by a forward since Robbie Fowler in the 2000-01 season, but having overtaken the Englishman as Liverpool's all-time leading Premier League goalscorer, it would only be fitting for Salah to follow in Fowler's footsteps again.
Andrew Robertson
Following Wijnaldum's departure in 2021, Scotland defender Andrew Robertson was one of six players appointed to the Reds' newly formed leadership group. He experienced his first armband action last season.
Unfortunately for the left-back, his two captain's games were forgettable affairs, as Liverpool's FA Cup defense ended against Brighton & Hove Albion. They were served humble pie in a 3-0 Premier League defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Those rotten results should not impact Robertson's chances of being appointed captain full-time, though, as the 29-year-old has now acted as Scotland's captain for almost five years and has played a significant role in his country's inspiring achievements, most notably leading Steve Clarke's side to the Euro 2020 finals.
Scotland have also begun their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign with four wins from four under Robertson's leadership, including a famous 2-0 victory over Spain. The former Hull City man will not cede the left-back spot to Liverpool anytime soon.
Trent Alexander-Arnold
On the other side of the backline, Trent Alexander-Arnold represents the junior member of Liverpool's leadership group. However, Klopp has already trusted him with the captain's job since his breakthrough into the first team.
During the aforementioned Champions League clash with Midtjylland in 2020, 22-year-old Alexander-Arnold was surprisingly named Liverpool's skipper ahead of Salah. He proudly wore the armband for his boyhood club until Henderson was introduced at the 61-minute mark.
A local lad who knows the club inside and out, Alexander-Arnold relishes the "fond memories" of leading Liverpool out of the tunnel for the first time. The 24-year-old flaunts his creative excellence in his newest hybrid role.
Alexander-Arnold's age will not help his cause to take over as Henderson's successor. However, while it may be considered too early for the right-back to assume such an onerous role week in and week out, the captaincy could very well be his a couple of seasons down the line
