An XI of players that were stripped of the captaincy ft. Neymar, Terry and Eto'o | OneFootball

Harry Maguire has been stripped of the captaincy at Manchester United.

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The Englishman took to social media to reveal the news.

“After discussions with the manager [Erik ten Hag] today he has informed me he is changing captain,” Maguire wrote on Twitter.

“He outlined his reasons to me and whilst I’m personally extremely disappointed, I will continue to give my all every time I wear the shirt.

"So I wanted to say a massive thank you to the Manchester United fans for all their brilliant support whilst I’ve been wearing the armband.

“Since the day I took on the role, three and half years ago, it’s been a huge privilege to lead Manchester United and one of the proudest moments of my career to date.

"It’s one of the greatest honours in club football. I’ve done everything I possibly could to help United be successful - on and off the field.

"I will always be grateful to Ole Gunnar Solskjær for first giving me the responsibility and I wish whoever now takes it on every success and they will have my full support.”

Maguire is not the first high profile player to have been stripped of the captaincy. We have named an XI of players to have had the armband taken from them during their career.

XI of players to have been stripped of the captaincy

GK: Vincent Enyeama (Nigeria)

In 2015, Nigeria coach Sunday Oliseh took the decision to take the captaincy off Enyeama and hand it to Ahmed Musa.

Explaining his decision, Oliseh told ESPN FC: "When I took over as coach, Enyeama was the first person I went to see. I drove to Lille, took him out to lunch and discussed my plans and philosophy going forward.

"While we were talking, he mentioned his plans to retire in about a year or two. I told him I was building a team and he should not talk about retirement now.

"On three separate occasions when we talked, including before the Tanzania game, he kept talking about retirement. That was when I made up my mind to appoint a captain I could count on for the long run.

"I cannot have a captain who is thinking about retirement. I want one who will lead the team into the future. That's why I took that decision."

Enyeama, who made 101 caps for his country, accused Oliseh of disrespecting him in the way he was informed that he would be losing the armband and retired from international football shortly after.

LB: William Gallas (Arsenal)

In 2008, Gallas revealed in an interview that there were tensions within the squad and criticised his teammates.

Arsene Wenger made the decision to strip him of the captaincy and hand the armband to Cesc Fabregas.

Gallas was also fined and dropped for their next match against Manchester City. He left the club in 2010.

CB: Sami Hyypia (Liverpool)

Hyypia was appointed Liverpool's permanent captain in 2002. A year later, Gerard Houllier decided to take the armband from the Finnish defender and pass it to Steven Gerrard.

Hyypia didn't let losing the armband affect him. He spent six more seasons in Merseyside and is now considered one of the best defenders in their recent history.

Speaking about losing the captaincy in 2022, he told the Liverpool Echo: "Coming from Finland and being the Liverpool captain is a great honour. I still remember the day I lost the captaincy to Stevie and I am very happy that happened.

"I knew it meant a lot to Stevie and he grew up as a man and a player so much after that. For myself, I started to play better when I lost the captaincy. It worked both ways.

"It may have even made our relationship even deeper as he saw I was okay with the manager's decision and took it as a professional and a man. I think he [Gerrard] respected me more after that. I wanted to help Stevie and if he had a problem, I was always there."

CB: John Terry (England)

In 2010, Terry was stripped of the England captaincy by Fabio Capello following allegations about his private life.

He was reinstated as captain a year later.

A few months prior to Euro 2012, Terry was removed as captain once again after allegations he racially abused Anton Ferdinand.

RB: Milan Skriniar (Inter Milan)

Inter stripped Skriniar of the captaincy in February after he signed a pre-contract agreement with Paris Saint-Germain.

Inter manager Simeone Inzaghi told Sky, per GetItalianFootballNews: “I don’t judge his choices, but the man and the player, who are unique. He is a splendid boy who works well every day.

"Due to what happened, Skriniar will no longer be captain, but we have already talked about it serenely with him.”

CM: Granit Xhaka (Arsenal)

Xhaka was made Arsenal captain at the start of the 2019/20 season, only to have the armband taken from him two months later after an incident in a game against Crystal Palace.

The Swiss midfielder was booed off the pitch as he was being substituted. Xhaka reacted by raising his arms and cupping his ear. He then took his shirt off and headed straight down the tunnel.

Xhaka's successor also features in this list...

CM: Joey Barton (Queens Park Rangers)

Barton had the mother of on-pitch meltdowns in the final game of the 2011/12 season against Manchester City.

The Englishman was given a straight red card for elbowing Carlos Tevez.

He then kicked Sergio Aguero and tried to headbutt Vincent Kompany.

Barton was fined six weeks’ wages and had the captaincy taken from him.

He was also handed a £75,000 fine from the Football Association and given a 12-match ban.

Barton said in a statement, per the Independent: “My behaviour was wrong and I accept the punishment that has been imposed upon me as a result. I apologise to the manager, my team-mates and of course the QPR fans for my actions. I also apologise to the Manchester City players, staff and supporters.”

LW: Neymar (Brazil)

Neymar was named Brazil's permanent captain after Brazil's World Cup campaign in 2018.

A series of off the field issues saw him lose the armband just eight months later.

The decision came shortly after he was banned for three matches by the French football authorities for hitting a fan after PSG's French Cup final loss to Stade Rennes.

per Sky Sports.

He was replaced as captain by Dani Alves.

ST: Samuel Eto'o (Cameroon)

Eto'o lost the armband after Cameroon lost all three of their matches at the 2014 World Cup.

A statement from Cameroon read, per SportsMole: "Stephane M'Bia [is the] senior national team captain.

"[He] will be respectively assisted by Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Vincent Aboubakar. M'Bia, Choupo-Moting and Aboubakar replace Samuel Eto'o, Nicolas N'Koulou and Eyong Enoh."

Eto'o, who was 33 years old at the time, announced his retirement from international football shortly after. He scored 56 times in 118 games for his country.

ST: Mauro Icardi (Inter Milan)

In 2019, Inter made the decision to strip Icardi of the captaincy amid a contract dispute. Just days before, his wife and agent Wanda Nara complained that her husband was not being given enough support by his teammates.

Speaking about the decision to take the armband off Icardi, manager Luciano Spalletti said, per ESPN: "The decision to take the captain's armband off Icardi was difficult and painful because we know all about his value.

"It is a very hard decision to take, but it is one that everybody within the club shared, and one which was taken exclusively for the good of Inter."

Icardi refused to play in Inter's next match, a Europa League game against Rapid Vienna.

He was shipped out on loan to Paris Saint-Germain a few months later and completed a permanent move to the French club in 2020.

RW: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Arsenal)

In December 2021, Aubameyang was not included in Arsenal's squad to face Southampton after returning late from a trip abroad.

The captaincy was officially taken off him a few days later.

“The decision we have taken as a club is very clear,” Mikel Arteta said, per the Guardian. “It is because we believe he has failed to be committed at the level we all expect and agree. It is as simple as that.

“What I expect from any person in this football club, that is representing this badge, is passion and that he gives absolutely 100%, that he puts the club in front of any personal interests and is able to do anything to fulfil the badge we have on the chest.

"Apart from that, you can listen to individuals and you can understand different cultures, but that commitment and passion has to be there. Unfortunately, it wasn’t.”