Steven Gerrard to decide on Aston Villa's long-term captain in the summer

Tyrone Mings took the armband following Jack Grealish’s £100million move to Manchester City last summer and retained it when Gerrard replaced Dean Smith as head coach in November.

But Gerrard, who sees the role as important in his plan of turning Villa into a Premier League force, always planned to review the captaincy during his first few months in charge and that process remains ongoing.

The boss explained Mings has a “really good shout” of remaining skipper, yet refused to rule out the possibility of signing a player who might then take the armband, during a summer window when he wants to add more leaders to the squad.

Gerrard said: “It is always important to get in among the group and see what they are like, every minute of every day. You want to see who is the glue in the team, see who leads in the right way, see who leads through adversity, not just when the sun is shining, see who is prepared to go above and beyond and sets the right standard on a daily basis.

“We are still working that out. I still won’t rule out the option of someone coming in, who I know, who is also capable of being in the running. It is something I am analysing really closely now and I will make a decision sometime during pre-season.”

Gerrard sat down with Mings following his appointment to explain the plan and added: “Ty was really appreciative of having the opportunity to continue with the armband.

“I made it clear to him first before we put it public that it was what we were going to do. We needed time. Ty is in with a really good shout, I’ve been really happy with him. But it’s not the right time, with eight games to go this season, to pick the long-term captain of Aston Villa.”

Gerrard, who captained Liverpool for 12 years, believes the role remains a vital one at clubs like Villa, who aspire to break into the Premier League’s elite.

He said: “It’s really important, especially with this group of players. We took over this group two points above the relegation zone.

“What we’re looking for in terms of the help and support we need to the group, we need more leaders.

“We need maybe more people who have been there and done it, got that type of experience to come in and support a lot of the young talent we’ve got in the group.

“Certain teams like Man City or Real Madrid who are serial winners, maybe the captaincy is not as important as they have a manager or a level of player across the board that are all world class, or in the main all world class.

“But when you take over a team 16th, two points above the relegation zone, and you’re having periods where one minute you’re looking really strong and good but it’s a little bit inconsistent, it’s important that leadership is added to the group.

“It’s important that leadership is retained in the group. When I decide on this captain, they’ll have a very important role to play because we need to turn this team into a more consistent team.”