5 superstar captains who were stripped of captaincy

#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.