Barcelona names new captains for La Liga season: Robert Lewandowski overlooked
Barcelona has announced its new leadership group in preparations for the new La Liga season. Sergi Roberto left in the middle of summer; hence, Marc-Andre ter Stegen has been promoted to become the team’s first captain.
New Leadership Group Announced
The German goalkeeper has been among the most consistent performers for the club and will now lead them onto the pitch. Ronald Araujo ascended to second captain—a man who was the third captain last season. It simply points at his growing influence and importance in the team, besides his fine form in defense.
One of last season’s leadership group members gets an upgrade, as the third captain will now be Frenkie de Jong. De Jong has leadership qualities and really steps up from his contribution in midfield.
Now, adding a touch of freshness and youth into the leadership group, 21-year-old Pedri becomes the fourth captain. Notably, Pedri is appointed captain despite his age, which speaks to the maturity of a player and an overall huge impact on the team.
Rounding out the leadership group is Brazilian winger Raphinha, who takes up the role of fifth captain. Including him within the leadership ranks will be in recognition of a growing role in the team, and how much of an influence he has on and off the pitch.
New La Liga Rule Impacting Captains
This season, La Liga has brought on board a rule that allows only team captains to discuss with the referees on the field. There is great responsibility bestowed upon the captains, especially Ter Stegen, who will be between the posts. With his positioning, Ter Stegen will thus have to deal with referees from a distance, hence possibly leaving duties to Araujo and De Jong, although both are out to injuries.
Robert Lewandowski Snubbed
Robert Lewandowski has been overlooked for a captaincy role for a second successive season, despite being one of the most high-profile and experienced players at Barcelona. The Polish striker is also a captain of his national team and played a central role in Barcelona last season, making his omission from the leadership group all the more notable.
Sensations have been sparked by not having Lewandowski on the list of captains, with so much expectation from fans and pundits—of course, looking at his big contribution to the attack of Barcelona. The omission, therefore, not to have him within a leadership role comes off as a surprise, considering the stature and experience of Lewandowski.
Preparation for the Season by Barcelona
This coming Saturday, against Athletic Club, there will be a focus on the new leadership group’s performance in their respective roles. Training sessions have been aimed at uniting the new captains within the responsibilities and how they might adapt to these new roles with new regulations in La Liga.
Not being one of the leaders within the team, Lewandowski is still going to be required to play his pivotal role in attack for Barcelona. How important he is to scoring goals and leading by example on the pitch will be quite important to the success of this new season.
Conclusion
With the change in strategy for the La Liga season, Barcelona has announced its new leadership group, placing a high value on both experience and youth. Whereas Marc-André ter Stegen, Ronald Araujo, Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, and Raphinha got captaincy roles, barring Robert Lewandowski from the management group is one big talking point.
With a new season now poised to take off, the world will indeed be watching and expecting great things from this leadership group, as Barcelona fans would want to see exactly how their team shapes up on the new rules in La Liga and whatever emerging characteristics are within the squad.
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