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The four captains of FC Barcelona’s current La Liga-winning season are Sergio Busquets, Gerard Pique, Jordi Alba, and Sergi Roberto.
But with Pique’s retirement in November and the June 30 departures of Busquets and Alba, only one of those players will be on the Blaugrana first team roster in 2023/2024.
When FC Barcelona attempts to retain their Spanish top flight championship and challenge in Europe once more the following season, there is naturally enormous excitement around who the next four captains will be.
Goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen replaced Pique when he left the group of leaders prior to the end of 2022, leaving just two openings, which have since been filled.
The biggest uncertainty is still who will take over for Busquets as the primary skipper. Since Lionel Messi departed the squad in 2021, the Spaniard served as the team’s primary captain.
It is widely believed that if Messi were to leave Paris Saint-Germain on a free transfer in the near future, the Argentine would take over immediately.
Messi may yet end up in Saudi Arabia, which his father and agent Jorge Messi would choose as a future destination, according to Beteve, as FC Barcelona struggles financially and to convince La Liga they can pull off the coup with their viability plan.
If the armbands are distributed on terms of seniority, Roberto would be the main captain followed by Ter Stegen, Ousmane Dembele, and Frenkie de Jong as they are the longest-standing members of a squad that has undergone many facelifts and has seen many exits since the turn of the decade.
De Jong captained Barca on Tuesday as they fell 3-1 to Real Valladolid, and was thrilled by being handed such responsibility which he called a “great honour”.
If we talk about which kind of figures ooze natural leadership qualities, though, Ronald Araujo and Robert Lewandowski should surely be in the running.
Yet when it comes to the long-term future of the club, of which Araujo is also an integral part, Pedri and Gavi might fancy their chances of making their way into the Gang of Four and progressing up the pecking order as the years pass because of their promise as potential club legends.
