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Caldwell's captaincy conundrum - 'judged in the right way'

· Paul Kendrick · 2026-08-08 · nguồn gốc

Gary Caldwell's Wigan Athletic captaincy conundrum - 'judged in the right way' Gary Caldwell has revealed he will not be choosing a Wigan Athletic skipper for the coming season - he will let his players decide! Latics are looking for a new leader on the field following Jason Kerr's departure at the end of last season. Caldwell - himself a former Wigan captain from the Premier League years - has rotated the armband in pre-season, to give potential candidates the chance to stake their claim. Summer signing Max Power has always been renowned for his leadership qualities, while Morgan Fox has captained previous clubs. But academy products Jensen Weir and James Carragher are also in the mix, with the former leading out Latics at Port Vale last season in the absence of Kerr, and the latter having captaincy experience at youth level. "I've given the armband to different players in pre-season, to give them an opportunity to lead the team, and show they can lead," said Caldwell. "I'll give it to another one of them at Barnsley on Saturday, and then I'll put it to the players before the first league game at Cambridge next weekend. "They will decide who their leader is, who their captain is, and who they want to stand behind as they go out for every game this season. "So it's not been decided yet, but I'll be looking to confirm that before Cambridge...both in terms of captain and vice-captain." Caldwell also reflected on his own experience of having captained the club under Roberto Martinez between 2010-13. "Roberto gave me the armband...the players hated me...I probably wouldn't have got it had it gone to the players!" he laughed. "On a serious note, it's a great honour to be captain of any football club, never mind this one. It comes with great responsibility, and it comes with a great weight of expectation. "The person you give it to has to be judged in the right way by his peers, by his team-mates. "I can pick someone, but the players might not respect that person in the same way, and might not want to be led by them. "I've always felt that your captain should be picked by your team-mates, because they’re the ones who will stand behind them on a matchday."