James Pearce: Four Liverpool stars in contention for vice-captain role | OneFootball

Liverpool Vice-Captain Debate Gives Andoni Iraola an Early Test at Anfield

Liverpool head into pre-season with a fresh voice in the dugout, a squad short on certainty and a leadership question that says plenty about the state of the club. After the collapse of last season and the end of Arne Slot’s reign, Andoni Iraola arrives at Kirkby needing to restore conviction, sharpen standards and make this side look like Liverpool again.

One of the first calls on that road will be the appointment of a new vice-captain following Andy Robertson’s departure. It might sound like a secondary matter in the middle of a rebuild, but it is anything but. Titles, recoveries and dressing-room resets all need proper characters. Liverpool have lost more than players this summer. They have lost noise, authority and lived experience.

As James Pearce for The Athletic outlined, Iraola has inherited a complicated picture. Mohamed Salah, Ibrahima Konate and Robertson have all moved on, while the new head coach must also integrate major attacking talent and reawaken others whose levels dropped badly in 2025-26. Against that backdrop, choosing Virgil van Dijk’s deputy becomes a decision about the present and the next phase after it.

The candidates each make a different kind of case. Alisson Becker offers authority and calm. Dominik Szoboszlai offers energy, ambition and a sense of future. Joe Gomez offers honesty, resilience and long service. Alexis Mac Allister offers football intelligence and a chance at redemption. None is a perfect fit, which is exactly why the debate matters.

Alisson Becker Brings Authority but Maybe Only for the Short Term

If this were a popularity contest, Alisson would be hard to beat. He is respected across the dressing room and adored by supporters. Pearce points out that he “has continued to set standards on a daily basis” and that “when he speaks, team-mates listen.” That matters in a dressing room that has lost senior figures.

There is something deeply reassuring about Alisson. He radiates composure, and in difficult periods that can be as important as volume. He has filled in as captain before, he understands the club and he carries himself with the sort of dignity that gives authority weight.

Photo: IMAGO

Yet Liverpool are also staring at a near future in which both Van Dijk and Alisson could leave within a year. Alisson turns 34 in October. His contract runs until 2027 after the club triggered an extension, but there is still a sense that this may be the closing chapter of his Anfield story. If Iraola wants continuity beyond the here and now, Alisson may be the safest short-term answer without being the strategic one.

That does not weaken his candidacy. It simply defines it. If the aim is immediate stability during a reset, few in world football are better placed to provide it.

Dominik Szoboszlai Looks Like the Future, With Caveats

On talent, profile and age, Szoboszlai stands out. He was Liverpool’s best performer last season and his numbers told the story. Thirteen goals and 12 assists from midfield in a side that drifted badly is no small feat. A player who can carry both output and responsibility naturally enters this conversation.

He has also made his ambitions plain. Asked if he could picture himself as captain one day, he said: “I can imagine it, yes. Of course it’s an honour to be a captain of Liverpool FC. I think everybody would love to be.” There is confidence there, and Liverpool need confidence after the drift of the past year.

He captains Hungary, he is 25, and there is a clear logic to making him Van Dijk’s deputy now with a view to succession later. In pure planning terms, that is elegant.

Photo: IMAGO

But football dressing rooms are not spreadsheets. Szoboszlai’s season also exposed rough edges. The article recalls how he apologised after his reaction in front of the away support after the 4-0 FA Cup defeat at Manchester City, and there were moments when his public image jarred with the mood around the team. Leadership is not only about influence when things go well. It is about reading the room when they do not.

There is another issue, too. His contract talks have dragged on. With his current deal running until 2028, it is not immediate panic, but uncertainty around a possible future captain is never ideal. Liverpool have had enough noise around key players in recent years. Handing a leadership role to someone whose contract remains unresolved would carry an element of risk.

Joe Gomez Represents the Club Better Than Most

There is a compelling emotional and cultural case for Joe Gomez. He has been at the club for 11 years, has known glory and misery, and has carried himself with admirable decency through both. He is one of those players supporters trust because he never hides from the difficult stuff.

That was evident late last season when he spoke after the draw with Chelsea, a result that brought boos from the stands. Gomez did not duck the feeling in the ground. He said: “They pay their hard-earned money to come and watch us and they’re entitled to show their frustration.” In a climate where players can sound media-trained to the point of saying nothing, that landed because it felt honest.

Photo: IMAGO

He went further, saying: “The supporters want to see us playing progressive football, trying to be intense, but also off the ball, putting a foot in and winning tackles. Being passive in any sense is not what I know and no-one wants to see.” Those words could be pinned to the wall at Kirkby. They speak directly to what Liverpool lost last season and what Iraola has been hired to restore.

If the vice-captaincy is about understanding the club, Gomez has a strong claim. If it is about availability and guaranteed influence on matchdays, the argument weakens. Injuries have interrupted too much of his career and, even when fit last season, he was often a squad option rather than an automatic starter. Like Van Dijk and Alisson, he is also in the final year of his contract. That limits the long-range appeal.

Still, there is something to be said for rewarding a player whose conduct has consistently reflected the values supporters want to see.

Alexis Mac Allister Could Yet Re-emerge Under Iraola

Mac Allister is the most understated name in the discussion, and perhaps the most intriguing. Last season was poor by his standards, and his influence diminished badly after such an important role in the 2024-25 title-winning campaign. Injury disrupted his pre-season, rhythm never really followed, and speculation over his future has hovered in the background.

Even so, class does not vanish overnight. Mac Allister is still only 27, still an elite midfielder on his day, and still one of the sharper football brains in the squad. According to the report, he “has become more vocal in the dressing room” since arriving from Brighton. That detail matters because leadership often develops away from public view before it is acknowledged externally.

Photo: IMAGO

There is a case that Iraola’s style could suit him perfectly. A more aggressive, front-foot side would ask him to think quickly, play forward and set tempo. If Mac Allister rediscovers his best level, the idea of him as vice-captain begins to make more sense. Yet that remains conditional on a revival that has not happened yet.

Our View

From a supporter’s perspective, this report is fascinating because it tells you where Liverpool are emotionally as much as structurally. A vice-captain choice in a settled dressing room barely causes a murmur. Right now it feels bigger because the club needs figures who can reconnect the team with the people in the stands.

Personally, Alisson feels like the obvious bridge. He is trusted, serious and never seems to play for himself. In a dressing room that has lost Robertson and Salah, there is value in calm authority. But there is also a strong pull towards Gomez. Supporters respond to players who understand the responsibility of wearing the shirt, and his comments about fans paying “their hard-earned money” cut through because they rang true.

Szoboszlai is the exciting answer, maybe even the modern answer, but there is a difference between wanting the armband and being ready for what comes with it at Liverpool. He may get there, and he probably will. For now, there is still some growing to do. Mac Allister feels more like a player who needs to rebuild himself before he can help lead others.

If Iraola wants a safe first step, choose Alisson. If he wants to send a message about the future, choose Szoboszlai. If he wants to honour character and connection, choose Gomez. Whatever happens, Liverpool need leaders who act like the shirt matters. Last season, too often, it did not look that way.