Why is Kieran Trippier being exiled at Newcastle?

What makes the perfect captain will vary depending on the football team. At grassroots level it is the man or woman who is prepared to pay up front for the pitch, find a referee and make endless phone calls ensuring there is cover for all positions while not swearing about the fact that everyone thinks they are best suited to playing in midfield. Further up the pyramid the captain is loud and leads by tough tackling example, chiding those who are not running as hard in the 88th minute as they were in the fifth.
But once you reach the Premier League, it becomes more blurred. Some players are anointed because they are home-grown and have a special bond with the fans. Some are appointed captains because they are foreign, intelligent and diligent. Some, like Liverpool’s Virgil van Dijk, have auras that simply scream “I am obviously an inspiring leader and will lead regardless of whether I wear the armband or not” and so they inevitably become captain.
The output of Bruno Fernandes transcends whatever crisis Manchester United are facing and the Portugal midfielder has often been the difference between an insipid team performance and one that is flawed but claws its way to victory. He is another obvious captain. It is less clear why Enzo Fernández was given, on the opening weekend, the armband in the absence of the Chelsea captain, Reece James. The Argentine midfielder celebrated his nation’s Copa America victory with a song containing racist lyrics and while he has apologised and is an integral part of the west London club, it feels like Enzo Maresca, his manager, is pushing for the narrative to end there when there is a continuing Fifa investigation concerning the video of Fernandez and his team-mates in celebration. Ah, if only all transgressions could be cleared by being promoted. Actually, across all industries, they sometimes are. You are either cancelled or sacked or elevated.
And then there is Kieran Trippier who is, it seems, pretty miffed that he has lost the captaincy of Newcastle United. Given he was tempted with a move to Bayern Munich in the January transfer window, it is not unreasonable that Eddie Howe, the Newcastle manager would demote him to being a vice-captain but if you really want a player to stay and truly value him then a loss of face is not the usual way to go about things.
• Read more: Eddie Howe – I want Trippier to stay – but can’t promise it
Newcastle travel to Bournemouth on Sunday which is where, last season, Trippier underlined why he was the perfect man to captain the team whenever Jamaal Lascelles was out of action. Bournemouth utterly outplayed a depleted opposition and when the England full back walked over to applaud the travelling fans who had made the 700 mile round trip, one or two in the stands shouted their dismay. Trippier could have just kept on clapping and smiling but he was incensed at the implication that he and his team-mates had not been trying their hardest. He squared up the supporters and shouted “How many injuries have we got?”
In that moment he cared more than anyone connected to the club to protect its integrity while remembering there needs to be dialogue between those who sing the songs and those who kick the ball. He broke ranks and was shepherded away by a steward just in case someone responded in a way they might regret. It might not be what would be detailed in the yet to be written captaincy handbook but it captured the essence of the role.
And now the relationship is fractured. Howe wants Bruno Guimaraes to be the team captain while Lascelles is out injured. This might well, as Howe hopes, “empower” Guimaraes but it also has the effect of accelerating the departure of Trippier.
That Newcastle are prepared to let the relationship with their defender end this way is dispiriting. Trippier was the first high profile player to sign up after the Saudi takeover and there is no doubt his arrival lent a positive spin to what was the start of a sports washing project. Hot on the heels of Trippier’s arrival came Chris Wood, Guimaraes and Matt Targett. It was enough to stave off relegation and finish eleventh and the club was primed to grow so fast that they qualified for the Champions League the following year.
Upon signing from Atletico in January 2022 Trippier denied that the size of his salary was the motivation and stated that he wanted to “be a leader in the dressing room with my experience” and to “help as much as I can on and off the pitch”.
This he undoubtedly did and of course clubs will often outgrow their players but Trippier, while nearly 34, is still a highly adept defender who crosses the ball invitingly. And who, critically, gave the club some soul when there were concerns at what Newcastle might become.
Howe, then, is using the armband as an incentive while discovering at the same time that its removal can feel like treachery.