McClaren's Candidates To Be Newcastle Captain Assessed

4. Tim Krul

Could Tim Krul be the next Newcastle United captain? It is certainly not beyond the realms of possibility, although there are those who do not believe goalkeepers should don the armband as there is little they can actually do to affect the outcome of a game when they are not in the very centre of the pitch. However, because Krul is one of the only (defensive) players pretty-much guaranteed a start that certainly works in his favour, as does the fact he is one of the longest-serving players in the Newcastle squad. That is probably one of the reasons why Steve McClaren handed the Dutchman the armbands for the 1-0 loss at home to Borussia Mönchengladbach at the weekend. Towards the end of last season Krul went missing at key moments and really struggled to find his top form - so the fact he finds it tough when the chips are down could well act against him. Yet the huge Dutch presence in the Magpies squad - made even greater by Georginio Wijnaldum's arrival - could mean Krul could be chosen to keep all the squad singing off the same hymn sheet. More cynically, offering Krul the captaincy could be used by McClaren as a tactic to keep his stopper in the North East for years to come. McClaren does have a tendency to make centre-backs captains though, even if his options there are limited to say the least... Likelihood Of Being Captain For 2015-16 Season: 4/10