These players are often fixtures in both club and international football. It’s a testament to their fitness and ability that they can juggle club and national team commitments with seamless ease.
Unlike other sports, a captain in football may not often be in the limelight. However, just like in any professional team sport, a football captain also needs to provide inspiration when the chips are down, rally his troops and be a leader on the field.
A football captain need not necessarily be the best player in his team. But to excel in the role, the player needs to be heard and respected in the dressing room and should possess the strength of character to lead his team from the front. These are attributes that come naturally to some players and are acquired in due course by a few others.
On that note, let us have a look at the five best captains in international football at the moment.
#5 Lionel Messi (Argentina)
Lionel Messi is arguably one of the best players to have graced the game of football. The diminutive Argentinian, who is the all-time top-scorer for both Barcelona and Argentina, is criticized, often unfairly, for failing to deliver for his national team.
However, in his defense, it can be said that at Barcelona, the likes of Andres Iniesta and Xavi Hernandez, and more recently, Neymar and Luis Suarez, have allowed Messi the freedom to be creative and express himself in the attacking third. That is hardly the case when the player turns up for his national team.
Nevertheless, Messi has had his moments while playing for the Albiceleste. Most recently, he scored a hat-trick against Ecuador on the last day of qualifying to take Argentina to the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. In that tournament, Messi also provided two assists for the two-time winners’ 3-4 defeat to France in the Round of 16.
However, considering the stupendous success he has had with Barcelona, time is running out for Messi to help end Argentina’s long trophy drought at major tournaments.
#4 Hugo Lloris (France)
After making his debut for France in a goalless draw against Uruguay in 2008, Hugo Lloris has been a standout performer for the two-time world champions.
The goalkeeper, who impressed one and all with his shot-stopping ability and composure in the box, was handed over the reins of France in 2010, albeit temporarily. But it was not long before Lloris became the captain of Les Bleus on a permanent basis.
The Tottenham Hotspur captain led France at the 2012 European Championships and the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Lloris, who also captained his team at the 2016 European Championships on home soil, missed out on silverware, as France went down to a Cristiano Ronaldo-led Portugal in the final.
A year later, Lloris overtook his illustrious compatriot Fabian Barthez to become the most capped goalkeeper for France before leading his team to glory at the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.
Lloris is the third-most capped player for his country and led France to their first final in the quadrennial tournament in 12 years. Despite committing an uncharacteristic mistake in the final against Croatia that led to Mario Mandzukic’s goal, Lloris held France’s second World Cup trophy aloft to cap off a memorable campaign.
#3 Manuel Neuer (Germany)
Manuel Neuer, is widely regarded as one of the best goalkeepers in the sport. He has been a permanent fixture for Bayern Munich and Germany for quite a while.
Neuer, who has kept an impressive 41 clean sheets in 94 games for Die Mannschaft, played a starring role for Germany in their fourth World Cup triumph in Brazil in the 2014 edition of the competition.
One of the finest examples of a ball-playing keeper, the Bayern Munich number one provided an assist to compatriot Miroslav Klose in a game against England in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. That made him the first custodian in more than four decades to provide an assist in a World Cup game.
Neuer’s excellent reflexes, shot-stopping ability, agility and an uncanny knack of taking penalties in penalty shootouts make him an integral player in German colors, a team he has led with aplomb since the retirement of Phillip Lahm in 2017.
#2 Sergio Ramos (Spain)
Sergio Ramos is one of the finest goal-scoring defenders in the modern game. Despite his chequered disciplinary record, the Real Madrid and Spain captain is a colossus at the back and is also a threat on the other end of the pitch.
The most-capped player for Spain is also his country’s most prolific active goalscorer. Ramos’ tally of 23 goals for La Furia Roja, which is mighty impressive for a defender, places him eighth overall in the list of Spain’s all-time goalscoring list.
Ramos, who has won the 2008 and 2012 European Championships and the 2010 FIFA World Cup for Spain, scored four times in his country’s successful Euro 2020 qualification campaign.
The player’s uncanny ability to lead from the front and rally his troops when the chips are down makes him an indispensable player for both Real Madrid and Spain.
#1 Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
Cristiano Ronaldo is arguably one of the finest players to have graced the game of football.
During an illustrious career for club and country, Ronaldo has scored goals and lifted silverware consistently. The all-time top-scorer in Champions League history has also scored more goals than any other player for Real Madrid and Portugal.
After missing out on silverware in Portugal colors as a teenager when the A Selecao endured a defeat against Greece in the 2004 European Championship final at home, Ronaldo triumphed in the 2016 edition of the quadrennial tournament.
Leading his team from the front, Ronaldo became the first player to score in four different editions of the European Championship, as Portugal won their first major trophy.
Three years later, a Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick in the semi-final inspired the A Selecao to go all the way in the inaugural edition of the UEFA Nations League.
Earlier this year, Ronaldo scored his 100th goal in Portugal colors. In the process, the legendary attacker became only the second player overall and the first from Europe reach the landmark.
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