Rooney left out in cold by England
Beckham, John Terry and Steven Gerrard had previously performed the role.
“We have this thing about ‘an England captain’, but really the captain is the person that is captain in the next game, isn’t it?” said Southgate.
“The key for me is how do we develop more leaders? I guess there’s almost a figurehead position that you might have at a club, but international level is different.
“You need a leadership group because if a player is injured and your captain’s not around, who comes and knocks on the door and asks for jelly babies in the afternoon or whatever it is?”
Southgate refused to rule out Rooney playing for England again – even if he moves to China in the summer – but the days when he was an automatic selection for the squad are clearly over.
Rooney, started four 2017.
“I’ve talked with Wayne and I think there is a chance he will be fit for the weekend,” said Southgate.
“But also, the injury, coupled with the fact he’s really not had a lot of game time 31, has games in recently, and others have in that area of the pitch, has sort of determined my decision on that one.
“I don’t think he expects, if he is not playing every week for his club, to be picked in this sort of situation.
“Every player needs to feel that competition for places – I can’t dress that up any other way. That’s where we are as a team.
“Wayne doesn’t have any expectations of being treated differently or treated in a special way.”
That said, Rooney is set to report to St George’s Park on Monday with the rest of the squad as Southgate lays out his vision for the future.
“We are going to have a meeting with all of the players about what we feel the next 18 months will look like,” the England manager said. “He will be part of that.”