If Jurgen Klopp is a fan of the multiple Emmy-award nominated masterpiece Succession, he might be currently channeling his inner Logan Roy.
In the likely event of Jordan Henderson joining the glitzy commuter belt between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia, Klopp must decide who should step up and assume the permanent Liverpool captaincy.
The smart money is on Virgil van Dijk, who skippered the side in Henderson’s absence during the first pre-season game in midweek. As the vice-captain since James Milner’s exit, the Dutchman might consider it his entitlement, albeit he will be rather less Machiavellian than Kendall, Shiv and Roman about securing it.
For diplomatic reasons, Klopp might calculate there is more to be lost than gained if he looks beyond his most experienced defender, especially if Van Dijk will feel hurt if snubbed. Van Dijk is the Dutch captain, a natural leader and one of the most articulate players at the club, never shirking the public gaze whatever the result. He has been a figurehead of the Anfield dressing room since his debut in 2018, so it will be a seamless promotion if - as is expected - he is wearing the armband full-time for the first Premier League game of the season.
Indeed, there is only one logical reason why it might not be him. His age. Van Dijk turned 32 earlier this month. He may have two or three years left at the highest level, after which Klopp may have to ponder another appointment. The same reasoning may rule Mohamed Salah out, and although goalkeepers have more longevity, another highly popular choice, Alisson Becker, is probably an outsider for the job.
In any other era, Scotland’s captain Andy Robertson would fit the bill as the perfect Liverpool skipper - a heart on the sleeve character whose Glaswegian values chime with those on the Kop. He will also be a strong candidate Klopp will not ignore.
But if the Liverpool manager is considering a skipper for the eight years over which Henderson wore the armband, there is only one realistic option.
‘The dream is to captain Liverpool’
At 24, Trent Alexander-Arnold’s time will come eventually. A compelling argument can be made that it is time to fast-track him and watch him thrive with the extra responsibility.
Shortly after making his senior debut, Alexander-Arnold expressed his determination to assume the position.
“The dream is to captain Liverpool,” he told Telegraph Sport in May, 2017. “There will be goals to achieve along the way, but until I captain Liverpool I will not be satisfied.
“It goes back to Steven Gerrard. He was my idol - seeing him wearing that armband week in, week out. I always wanted to be like him so wearing that armband would mean a lot to me.”
The Gerrard model is pertinent.
As a boyhood Liverpool fan and academy graduate, Gerrard was the symbol of the club over the course of his 12 years as skipper. He set the standards on and off the pitch, awarded the captaincy by Gerard Houllier having emerged from a tricky period in his emerging career when his form wavered and all the positive headlines about being a Kop idol were temporarily replaced with question marks because of his supposed flaws.
At the time, his elevation was contentious as Gerrard took the armband from Sami Hyypia. It proved a masterstroke as Gerrard’s consistency rose to an exceptional level. Responsibility led to greater maturity on and off the pitch. Whenever he spoke, especially before the biggest games, his words and demeanour carried immense power and emotion.
Alexander-Arnold has also recently re-emerged from the trickiest spell of his career. Finally re-modelled as a midfielder, whether full-time in the role for country or as a roaming right-back for his club, he is on the threshold of an exciting new phase.
If the final 10 games of last season are a taster, Alexander-Arnold will be one of the most productive players in Europe in the season ahead, fundamental to Klopp’s Liverpool redesign and the driving force of what the manager hopes will be his second great Anfield team. He has the potential to dominate the pace and tone of most Liverpool games - the player team-mates and fans may become most dependent upon as they did Gerrard.
Given that, why wait? The ultimate honour of being Liverpool captain would complement his current on-field transformation.
Klopp inherited a situation where Henderson was the skipper, Brendan Rodgers offering him the accolade when Gerrard left for LA Galaxy in 2015.
The first time Henderson and his deputy James Milner were unavailable, Klopp allowed the players to vote who should be skipper and vice-captain. Van Dijk was selected.
As with many overseas coaches, Klopp often gives the impression that the media and supporters are more obsessed about where wears the armband than they need to be. A dressing room has so many personalities, some are more naturally vocal than others, regardless of who is the skipper.
Captaincy can be more of an emblematic role, but sometimes the symbolism matters and stirs the fanbase.
When reconstructing a team to signify the long-term future is in good hands, who better to be captain than the world class local boy who is embodiment of the football club?
