Those of you who are regular readers of my articles will know that I’m not terribly fond of the choice of Kevin Nolan as our captain. For one, I don’t think a player has the right to turn up on his first day at a club and instantly be deemed the right man for the job, perhaps without considering other feasible options in the team that have served the club for longer. Also, I just don’t take him seriously. That might be a personal opinion and not shared by many of you, but he just doesn’t seem the responsible, fail-safe man we need. He seems to commit a lot of rash challenges and I just don’t think some of his behaviour is captain material. I went on a bit there, didn’t I? Sorry about that.
The man who I think would be the only realistic candidate for captain at the moment would be Robert Green. One of our longest serving players, he gives everything in every appearance and I for one am massively impressed by his dedication to the club in a time where players jump at the chance to get better money or go to a ‘better’ team. For me Greeno has everything you want in a captain – all you need to prove that is the way he screams to organise the players at any set piece, and the fact that he claps the fans after every single game – something not all players can say.
The only thing that is a slight concern for me is that his position on the pitch. Obviously in his goalkeeper role, Green isn’t in the heart of the action in open play. I would be a bit worried that if there was a flare-up or a match changing moment, Robert Green wouldn’t be able to get there quick enough, and at the same time still be on guard for any opposition goal scoring opportunities. Having said that, I think Nolan is a bit too quick to get involved and in other players’ faces.
I don’t think we have a clear outfield player that could replace Nolan as captain at the moment, but in a few years I think the role should go to home-grown talent, so Noble or Tomkins seem clear future candidates to me. At the moment, it feels like we may have to make do with Nolan.
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leave nolan alone,he is doing a good job,away games he has been great,he is always fighting the cause,speaking to refs during games,also he is playing a lot deeper then he has before in his career and is still getting used to the club,he is a northerner who has played his whole career up north,also he was good today at coventry making some vital challenges
Watched the game online. Nolan has good pedigree and behaves like a captain but does seem leggy he is not the all action player he was at Bolton. why did Pardew let hin go ? from Newcastle. I am undecided he has already scored 4 goals this season but seems to be uninvolved for large parts of many games. He may be like Lucas Neal a good leader whatever his personal performance is like.