Three Chelsea players in contention to replace Cesar Azpilicueta as club captain
Chelsea could soon find themselves without a club captain.
There’s a huge clearout taking place at Stamford Bridge this summer as the Blues look to trim their squad, with so many senior players linked with transfer exits.
Cesar Azpilicueta, who’s currently the longest-serving player in this Chelsea group, could be leaving after 11 seasons at the club.
90min reports that Azpilicueta has agreed a two-year deal with Inter Milan ahead of a potential move to the San Siro.
According to The Chelsea Chronicle, has identified three current Blues stars that should be in the running:
Reece James: First of all, Reece James is a candidate that stands out to us as captain material.
The 23-year-old defender may not be the absolute loudest on the pitch, but he certainly leads by example with his extremely high standards. It’s been a trademark of Azpilicueta’s captaincy in the last few years.
Despite some rocky times at Chelsea in the past couple of years, James has continued to grow into one of the world’s elite right-backs/right wing-backs.
We think the academy graduate could be a Blues skipper for such a long time, so giving him that responsibility now would be very exciting.
Our only worry would be the England star’s injury record limiting his actual minutes on the pitch.
Thiago Silva: Thiago Silva, who still oozes class in the defence, is the obvious pick to succeed Azpilicueta next season.
Our concern is that the 38-year-old centre-back would only be a short-term fix, though.
Silva has been a leader on and off the pitch during three faultless seasons at Stamford Bridge, so we’re delighted he extended his deal for a fourth year in the 2023/24 campaign.
The Brazilian is the perfect role model for our young group, which is why he could be the perfect stop-gap for a year before deciding the long-term captain.
However, is he going to be a nailed-on starter in Mauricio Pochettino’s side?
Enzo Fernandez
If you were to hang your hat on one Chelsea player to start every league match next season, Enzo Fernandez should be your pick.
Therefore, he should come under real consideration for the captain position.
It would be a massive call rewarding the 22-year-old midfielder with such a big responsibility, but we’ve already put our cards on the table by investing so much in him. After all, the Blues splashed out £106.8million in January to sign him from Benfica on an eight-and-a-half-year deal.
He’s got so much you look for in a captain with his aggression and commitment in the centre of the park.