Ben Gibson captained Stoke City in their opening preseason friendly, replacing Josh Laurent as captain from the previous campaign.
Whether or not he wears the armband, Ben Gibson will be a leader at Stoke City this season.
fresh signee Josh Laurent, who was named captain by Alex Neil last summer, trailed Gibson as Stoke won 3-0 against Chester on Thursday night in their first preseason friendly. The previous season’s captain was another player, Lewis Baker.
Steven Schumacher insists that he has not made a final decision for 2024/25 but it is clear that Gibson will be trusted as a leader both on and off the pitch.
“I haven’t decided 100% yet, but he’s a natural leader,” Schumacher remarked. He has consistently been that throughout his career. That’s why we invited him to the team: to be the one in charge of the dressing room on a daily basis and to act as an organizer and talker on the field.
“In his first ten days here, he’s really impressed us, and I’m sure he’ll only get better too.”
Since Ryan Shawcross, who had been captain for over ten years, departed for Inter Miami in 2021, the captaincy has been alternated every summer. The honor went to Joe Allen in 2022–2022, Baker in 2022–2023 and Laurent in 2023–2024.
Enda Stevens took over as captain in the second-half at Chester as Schumacher gave all his players a 45-minute run out. Stevens had deputised last season, as well as Wouter Burger, Ben Pearson and Ben Wilmot. Gibson has previously served as captain at Norwich City and Middlesbrough.
