Alisson confirmed as Liverpool vice-captain, but he will never wear the armband

Alisson Becker has been confirmed as Liverpool ’s new vice-captain, but Andoni Iraola has confirmed why the goalkeeper won’t wear the armband if Virgil van Dijk isn’t on the pitch. Iraola said Dominik Szoboszlai and Joe Gomez , the club’s longest-serving player, were also among his new leadership group, following the departures of Andy Robertson and Mohamed Salah. Iraola said the Premier League regulations that only allow captains to speak to the referee about contentious decisions mean that it is preferable for an outfielder to wear the armband. Premier League rules only allow the captains to speak to the referees (Getty) It would not make sense for a goalkeeper to run the length of the pitch if an incident happened in the opposition’s penalty area, for instance, with Iraola explaining his reasoning to Alisson. Alisson has been at Liverpool since 2018 but has entered the final year of his contract, with Szoboszlai, player of the season last campaign, likely to serve as captain if Van Dijk is missing. Iraola said: “I explained to Alisson that it’s not going to be possible that he wears the armband because with the new rule I think there is a big limitation if a goalkeeper wears the armband. “Because basically, if something happens in the opposition box the referee has to explain to the captains what’s happening, all the decisions. “I had one season with Neto in Bournemouth and then you have to start every game to say a different player that can act as a captain, and this is not viable. “But I wanted him to feel like we value him. I’ve had enough time and we will have more time to know each other, but I had to explain also the decision about the armband to Ali “Because he is a goalkeeper and unfortunately they are putting the rules in a way that there is a lot of disadvantages to having a goalkeeper keeper as a captain.” (Getty) Iraola added that he was not concerned about a lack of leaders in the Liverpool dressing room after influential figures Robertson and Salah left the club over the summer. "We lost a lot in terms of experience, high-level players who have performed so well for so many years here,” Iraola said. “But I think it is also a natural thing in clubs. “I think we have a lot of young players wiling to take those minutes and ready to take those leadership roles. Overall, I am very happy with the attitude of the players in the pre-season.” Iraola, who will take charge of Liverpool for the first time when the Reds travel to Newcastle on Sunday, said that he hopes that Tottenham target Cody Gakpo is still part of his squad.