Enzo Maresca’s pre-season media duties have provided an unexpected talking point regarding the City leadership group, after the manager outlined a unique tactical requirement that effectively rules Erling Haaland out of wearing the captain’s armband.
Maresca revealed that throughout his managerial career at Leicester City and Chelsea, he has enforced a strict rule for his on-pitch captain: whenever the team scores, the skipper must immediately report to the touchline to receive quick tactical instructions while the rest of the squad celebrates.
However, the Italian manager acknowledged that applying the rule to his star striker presents a glaring practical flaw.
“If Erling is the captain, we have a problem — can you imagine?” Maresca joked, pointing out that because Haaland scores the vast majority of the team’s goals, expecting him to sprint straight to the dugout rather than celebrate with his team-mates would be absurd.
The light-hearted comments sparked broader debate on talkSPORT, where ‘pundit’ Gabriel Agbonlahor argued that Haaland’s natural inclination as a purely focal, individual finisher makes him an awkward fit for formal leadership duties regardless of touchline rules.
While City are yet to confirm their official leadership group for the 2026-27 campaign, Maresca’s tactical quirk means the armband is almost certainly destined for a deeper-lying outfield player who can easily relay instructions from the bench.
