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The future of European Ryder Cup captaincy looks to be in good hands.
Luke Donald will lead the visitors into battle this September at Bethpage Black, while several leading candidates wait in the wings for a crack.
His compatriot Justin Rose is a shoo-in for the role, but he isn’t the only one being tipped to take charge in the coming years.
That’s because Rose’s opposite number at this month’s Team Cup in Abu Dhabi, Francesco Molinari, has been backed to make a worthy captain.
Speaking to Gulf News, Matteo Manassero – who played alongside Molinari in the Ryder Cup warm-up event – admitted his fellow Italian deserves his place in the queue.
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“Of course he could,” Manassero said when asked if Molinari could become a future captain.
“Francesco is great, he is an amazing person and listens a lot. I’d describe him as a quiet, wise man – that’s how he is.
“He doesn’t say anything extra, he says what he needs to say. He’s very direct, he listens and he’s open with everybody. He was a great captain at the Team Cup.”
Molinari’s pedigree in the biennial contest speaks for itself. The 42-year-old represented Europe three times, and won on all three occasions in 2010, 2012 and 2018.
Meanwhile, Molinari was ‘honoured’ to be named the fifth and final vice-captain for Europe at the 2023 Ryder Cup, where the home side ran out dominant winners.
“It is a proud moment any time you get to put on the shirt with the European badge on it,” he said.
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Manassero, however, is just the latest European player to acknowledge Molinari’s hopes of leading Team Europe in the future.
After captaining GB&I at the Team Cup last year, and losing to Molinari’s Continental Europe outfit, Tommy Fleetwood named him a certainty for the role.
“Justin and Fran are obvious candidates for future Ryder Cup captains,” he said.
“It [the Team Cup] was amazing for me. I wouldn’t consider myself at a stage in my career where I would be seen as ready to captain a team, but it was an unbelievable experience and a massive honour to captain the GB&I side.”
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