Football
ESPN staff 8y

Arsenal appoint Per Mertesacker as captain for the new season

LENS, France -- Arsenal defender Per Mertesacker insists Arsene Wenger has yet to appoint a new club captain, and said his leadership role won't change even if he doesn't wear the armband.

Reports this week claimed that Wenger was set to hand Mertesacker the captaincy after Mikel Arteta retired this summer. But the 31-year-old German told ESPN FC that no decision has been made yet.

"No, I cannot confirm that. There's nothing to say about that from my side, because I'm not going to decide that," Mertesacker said after Arsenal's 1-1 draw at French second-division side RC Lens in their first preseason game on Friday.

Mertesacker did wear the armband as one of the few veterans who played against Lens -- and did so for much of last season when Arteta was out injured -- but called upon every player in the team to provide leadership on the pitch.

"Everyone needs to take responsibility, especially in preseason and show himself from his best side. I think everyone does it," the centre-back said.

"And in the end, the manager makes his decisions on that front, who's going to play and what are his plans for next season and for the future. I think there's a lot more to discuss that are more interesting than the captain's armband. I get along with any decision he takes because for me it doesn't matter if I wear the band or not."

The other likely candidates for the job are 34-year-old goalkeeper Petr Cech and Mertesacker's centre-back partner Laurent Koscielny. And Mertesacker insisted that his own role on the pitch won't change if he's not made captain.

"As a veteran you need to be vocal, that is the most important thing during the game, to guide those young players," he said. "We have got a lot of talented players but they need to know that I will always back them up and I will always be vocal and I want to get them to their best."

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