I still think Dawson is an able deputy & partner rather than a leader... it's no co-incidence that when he plays alongside King or Gallas (who in turn take the 'natural leader' role) he excels... but next to Bassong or Kaboul where - given the armband - you'd expect him to step up, he somehow looks out of his depth...
This is an honest opinion and not just slating the guy, but maybe some players just aren't Captain material, and do better just concentrating on ONE job (ie; defending) rather than keeping a Captain's eye out for the rest of the team... players like Parker seem to thrive on it, and i'd also put Modric in the Dawson bracket... whenever he's had the armband (a few times now) he just seems distracted, and not 100% focussed on what he does best...
I reckon if we can get Samba in and most probably Bassong out, we'll have THREE solid, captain-like CB's in him, Gallas & King... to that, you can add either Kaboul or Dawson to the equation, and you should have plenty of combinations that work.
But for me, Dawson + anyone OTHER than King/Gallas simply doesn't quite cut it... much as I'd love him to prove otherwise!
This is an honest opinion and not just slating the guy, but maybe some players just aren't Captain material, and do better just concentrating on ONE job (ie; defending) rather than keeping a Captain's eye out for the rest of the team... players like Parker seem to thrive on it, and i'd also put Modric in the Dawson bracket... whenever he's had the armband (a few times now) he just seems distracted, and not 100% focussed on what he does best...
I reckon if we can get Samba in and most probably Bassong out, we'll have THREE solid, captain-like CB's in him, Gallas & King... to that, you can add either Kaboul or Dawson to the equation, and you should have plenty of combinations that work.
But for me, Dawson + anyone OTHER than King/Gallas simply doesn't quite cut it... much as I'd love him to prove otherwise!