Kostas Tsimikas posted an emotional message after captaining Liverpool in their 6-3 win over LASK in the Champions League. The Greek international was handed the armband ahead of vice-captain Alisson Becker, who started in goal, and Virgil van Dijk, who came on as a second-half substitute.
Dream come true for Tsimikas
In an emotional post to Instagram, Tsimikas wrote: "Representing my dream club, on a Champions League night, as a captain, with a win and some assists serving?! Little Kostas, we made it happen kid."
He added: "Never stop dreaming and believing guys. Dreams can come true. I made some of mine come true today and it feels great. I am so grateful."
Barcola shines in rotated side
Summer signing Bradley Barcola was the standout performer, scoring his first goals for the club in a memorable treble. Lewis Koumas also found the net, alongside Ronald Araujo and Jeremie Frimpong, in a much-changed Liverpool side under Andoni Iraola.
Captaincy decision explained
The decision to prefer Tsimikas over Alisson raised eyebrows among supporters on social media. Under the new 'Only the Captain' rules in the Premier League and across English football, referees can explain key decisions only to captains, which creates a disadvantage for goalkeepers, as they would have to discuss incidents with the referee at the other end of the pitch.
To alleviate potential issues, a player is nominated to approach the referee instead of the captain. Liverpool have kept Alisson in the leadership team, but on-field he will not wear the armband.
At the beginning of the season, Iraola explained: "The captains will be Virgil, will be Alisson, will be Joe Gomez, and Dom Szoboszlai. Because if something happens in the opposition box the referee has to explain to the captains what's happening, all the decisions."
He added: "I had one season with [goalkeeper] Neto [as captain] 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 keeper and, unfortunately, they are putting the rules in a way that there is a lot of disadvantages to having a keeper as a captain."
