Teddy Sheringham is not sure that Arsenal and Manchester United have made the right decision over their respective midfield captains.
Mikel Arteta appointed Martin Odegaard as captain and last season they produced their best campaign in years, even if they ultimately ended empty handed.
United had Harry Maguire as captain for their first season under Erik ten Hag, but the England international defender has fallen out of favour at Old Trafford, and is linked with a move away.
Maguire confirmed that he had been stripped of the captaincy by the Dutchman, and he has now been replaced in the role by Bruno Fernandes, with some speculation that another midfielder, Casemiro, was a rival for the position.
Speaking to Lord Ping, Sheringham questioned whether both Fernandes and Odegaard play too far forward to have the best picture of how a game is progressing.
Discussing Fernandes, he said: “No, I don’t think he will change parts of his game now that he has been made the permanent captain of Manchester United. Bruno Fernandes is the player that he is.
“Would I have made him my captain? I don’t think I would have done and it’s a similar story with Martin Odegaard at Arsenal. They are both fantastic players and I love what they do on the football pitch but they're not week-in, week-out solid players that you thrive off of. I think a captain has to be a certain type of player.
“I always look at captains like John Terry, Tony Adams, and Roy Keane. These were players that you knew what you were going to get every time they went onto a pitch. Players like Fernandes can be a bit inconsistent – a bit flappy – sometimes I look at Fernandes and I think to myself, ‘I need a bit more from you (as my captain).’
”I’m surprised that Ten Hag has picked Fernandes, but he knows much more than I do! Casemiro. I think that Casemiro provides the team with stability, and he is ever present. He always does the right thing on the pitch, and he can see everything from a slightly different perspective than Bruno. Bruno will play with his back to the rest of the team at times, whereas Casemiro sees everything.”