Former Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn has given his views on who should be the next captain at the club.

With Laurent Koscielny’s departure this summer, the vacancy has been up for grabs, and Swiss midfielder Granit Xhaka was given the armband during the Gunners’ 1-0 victory over Newcastle last week.

This perhaps signals that the 26-year-old will be made permanent captain of the club, despite many calls from fans for this to be reconsidered.

Nevertheless, Winterburn has argued that new signing David Luiz should be appointed captain this season.

The Brazilian, who signed on deadline day from Chelsea for £8m, will undoubtedly be one of the first names on Unai Emery’s teamsheet this season, and Winterburn believes that the defender has the qualities to replace the departed Koscielny as captain.

Speaking to Sportingbet, Winterburn said: “Emery should make David Luiz his captain for this season. He has the ability to be that Tony Adams figure in Arsenal’s backline.

“I know he’s new, but that doesn’t worry me at all. A captain needs to be someone that’s vocal, someone that’s not scared to make people aware of their responsibilities within a game just because they might upset them for five minutes.”

“Like a lot of supporters, I’m not a fan of this rotational five-man captain. Of course, every player should have the ability to be a captain on the pitch and let other players know if there is a problem but you need a figurehead – someone who can lead by example.

“I’m not around the training ground a lot, and that’s where Emery will see who are the big, strong, vocal characters, who are not afraid to upset people if they need to be upset.

“If you haven’t got a vocal captain in the squad, then Emery should choose someone like Aubameyang, a player that will lead by example on the pitch and will play the majority of games.

“Most importantly, Emery needs to choose one captain and a vice-captain so they can shoulder the responsibility.”

With Luiz being an unused substitute against Newcastle, he looks set to make his Arsenal debut on Saturday against Burnley.