Dominik Szoboszlai says he is enjoying the extra responsibility that comes with being one of Liverpool’s vice-captains, a role that has become more prominent after Andy Robertson departed over the summer. The 25-year-old has been named one of Virgil van Dijk’s deputies for 2026-27, alongside Alisson Becker and Joe Gomez, and he says the job fits the way he already plays.
The timing matters because Szoboszlai signed a new long-term contract in July and is now in his fourth season at Liverpool. That has given the Hungary national team captain a stronger voice inside the club’s leadership group, even if he insists his first instinct is still to set the standard through performance rather than speeches.
Szoboszlai said he tries to give his best every day, in every match and every training session. He added that he would rather speak on the pitch than spend too much time talking in the changing room, pointing to the more senior figures around him as the players who naturally carry that burden. In practice, Liverpool’s vice-captaincy is not a ceremonial title. It means helping Van Dijk set standards, keeping the group aligned and carrying responsibility when the captain is not the one leading the conversation.
That is where Szoboszlai’s style becomes part of the story. In a conversation with Steven Gerrard for TNT Sports, he said he likes Andoni Iraola a lot and loves the direct, intense approach associated with him. He said that kind of intensity is exactly what Liverpool missed last season, even though the squad has the quality to be unstoppable if it brings that edge back.
There is a slight contradiction in that message, and it is the one Liverpool will have to solve on the field. Szoboszlai wants the team to be fearless and to make opponents worry about Liverpool, but he is also saying the team fell short of that standard in the previous campaign. Leadership can sharpen the message, yet it does not by itself restore the bite he keeps talking about.
Szoboszlai said he had spoken to Milos Kerkez before joining Liverpool and had expected the intensity he now describes, with the promise of running, going all in and competing one against one if needed. That is the version of Liverpool he wants to project now: not a side waiting to react, but one forcing others to adjust. The next test is whether the new vice-captain structure, with Szoboszlai in it, becomes visible in results rather than just in the dressing room hierarchy.
