It is a familiar trope that there are not so many great captains in football these days. Never will that have been more keenly felt than at the top of the Premier League on Friday morning.
The news that Manchester City, plus the three biggest clubs in London — Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham — are still to agree temporary cuts or deferrals with their playing staff, can be viewed in many ways: but a failure of leadership is certainly one of them.
When Jordan Henderson launched his charity initiative earlier this month, he did so by contacting the captains.