Steven Gerrard has taken the ruthless decision to strip Tyrone Mings of the Aston Villa captaincy and hand it to John McGinn.
The former Liverpool midfielder has stamped his authority on the Villa squad in his first pre-season since taking over from Dean Smith in November, stripping his centre-back of the captaincy he took on last August in a bid to improve his individual performances.
Mings is no longer guaranteed a starting place in Gerrard’s strongest line-up following their signing of Diego Carlos and his decision to remove the armband from the England international adds further credence to the thought of his diminishing minutes.
LIVE UPDATES: Salzburg vs Liverpool match commentary stream and analysis
TRANSFER TALK: Roberto Firmino has already confirmed his stance on Liverpool exit
McGinn, who has been at Villa Park since 2018 and who started 35 of the 38 league games last year, is a hugely popular figure among both squad and coaching staff, with Gerrard previously hailing the 27-year-old’s ‘attitude and application’. The Scotland international will also have been backed by Gerrard due to the likelihood that he will feature regularly.
Goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez will be vice-captain while former Manchester United stalwart Ashley Young will take up the role as club captain.
“John has demonstrated that he is ready to take on the captaincy through his performances on the pitch combined with his attitude and application in training.” Gerrard said following the announcement. “John has demonstrated that he is ready to take on the captaincy through his performances on the pitch combined with his attitude and application in training.
“He is a popular member of the dressing room who sets high standards and expectations of himself. Emi is a respected senior member of the squad while Ashley Young’s experience speaks for itself and he is the perfect ambassador for the first team.
“Naturally, I have had to have a discussion with Tyrone Mings and have explained my reasons for making this decision. More importantly, I believe that not having the responsibility of the captaincy will allow Tyrone to focus more on his own game which can only benefit him and the team.”
READ NEXT
