5 superstar captains who were stripped of captaincy

Being a club captain comes with a lot of responsibility. Not only do you have to lead by example and be a role model for your teammates, but you also need to be accessible and transparent. Successful clubs have always had big personalities and a proper leader.

Take, for example, the treble-winning Manchester United side of 1999. A belligerent Roy Keane is someone you'd want to accompany to a war. Or Patrick Vieira of Arsenal's 'Invincibles'. Liverpool's Steven Gerrard is another legendary captain. Of course it's a double sided coin.

When it's all sunshine and rainbows, captains have a great time basking in the glory. But when the going gets tough, they are the first ones to be put under scrutiny.

In light of recent incidents, let's take a look at five superstar captains who were stripped of the captaincy.

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#5 Joey Barton (Queens Park Rangers)

Manchester City v Queens Park Rangers - Premier League

Joey Barton is no stranger to controversies or disciplinary problems. He was a bit of a ruffian on the football pitch and the sort of character who often escalates issues to unnecessary heights.

Manchester City's dramatic 3-2 win over Queens Park Rangers on the final day of the 2011-12 season was the Premier League at its peak. What's often forgotten or is overshadowed by Sergio Aguero's career defining last-minute heroics is Joey Barton's villainy in the same game.

It's worth noting that Barton played for City between 2002 and 2007 but wasn't too keen on civility.

QPR needed at least a draw or Bolton Wanderers to lose their game on the final day of the season to stay in the Premier League. However, their captain was Joey Barton and he elbowed former teammate Carlos Tevez in the face. He didn't stop there and kicked Sergio Aguero in the back of his knee after being shown the red card.

He also tried to headbutt Vincent Kompany and start a fight with Mario Balotelli before being dragged away by Micah Richards. Barton rightfully suffered in the aftermath. He was stripped of the captaincy and loaned off to Marseille.

The former Manchester City man ought to be grateful that the incident happened on a football pitch.

#4 Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan)

Parma Calcio v FC Internazionale - Serie A

For a while it looked like Mauro Icardi had a good thing going on at Inter Milan. He had become one of the youngest captains in the club's history and was scoring a lot of goals. The Nerazzurri seemed to be a good fit for the controversial Argentina international.

However, he ticked the Inter ultras off by throwing flak at them in a book. His wife Wanda Nara then ranted about Inter Milan's players and management in a show called Tiki Taka. That ended up being the last straw as far as Icardi's captaincy was concerned.

The club was simply not going to let the captain and his wife undermine the institution. He was immediately stripped of the captaincy. Did Icardi take it well? Nope. He refused to play for Inter Milan in a Europa League match against Rapid Wien the next day.

#3 Granit Xhaka (Arsenal)

Manchester United v Arsenal FC - Premier League

Granit Xhaka had the potential to become a good leader for Arsenal. He is known for turning in committed performances but his lean patches tend to stretch for longer than anyone would have liked.

Unai Emery made Xhaka the Arsenal captain for the 2019-20 season. However, the Swiss international's run as captain of the Gunners lasted just two months. Xhaka was booed off the ground after putting in a poor performance at the Emirates against Crystal Palace.

He was substituted and the crowd booed him to which Xhaka responded by gesturing something very unsavoury. There was no coming back from that and Xhaka was stripped of captaincy after the game.

#2 William Gallas (Arsenal)

Arsenal v Liverpool - UEFA Champions League Quarter Final

In the early 2000s, Arsenal had two successive French captains. Patrick Vieira was a legendary leader and the great Thierry Henry was his successor. So when Henry left the club, Arsenal decided to hand over the captain's armband to another Frenchman William Gallas over Gilberto Silva.

However, Gallas did Vieira and Henry's legacy no favors. In fact, Arsenal fans would hate to recall those times. As captain, Gallas just didn't seem to fit the shoes. He was nowhere near as charismatic or efficient as his predecessors.

Gallas seemed to be miffed by the goings-on at the club and decided to protest by sitting on the pitch after Arsenal conceded a late equalizer against Birmingham City.

To make things worse, Gallas criticized the youngsters at the club and talked about the infighting in Arsenal's dressing room. Naturally, it led to the Frenchman being removed from his role as captain. He would then go on to join Arsenal's arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

#1 Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur - Premier League

Arsenal took the captain's armband off Granit Xhaka and gave it to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. It made sense because Aubameyang was the Gunners' best player at the time. There were a lot of rumors about his potential exit but the Gabonese international put all such speculation to rest by signing a bumper contract.

But since renewing his contract, Aubamayeng became a shadow of the player he used to be. His form dipped greatly and he started becoming more of a liability than a talisman.

Aubameyang infuriated fans by pulling up late for a North London derby in March 2021. His performances on the pitch did not improve either and his commitment was getting questioned on a regular basis.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta decided enough was enough earlier in December and decided to strip Aubamayeng of the captaincy.