Vincent Kompany has changed what it means to be captain of Manchester City.
The Belgian not only has the required passion for the club on the pitch, but he knows the responsibility that comes with the armband outside a matchday at the Etihad.
Kompany regularly speaks with authority and class on a range of subjects. When the All or Nothing documentary crew showed Kompany speaking to schoolchildren about Nelson Mandela, it perfectly encapsulated that he is not just at City to win football matches.
The captain of the club is by definition a role model, and Kompany's recent drive to tackle homelessness in Manchester as part of his testimonial year sums up his character just as much as any performance on the pitch.
However much Manchester City is becoming a truly international club, its roots remain in Manchester - and Kompany gets that.
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But Kompany is not getting any younger, and while a one or two-year contract extension seems likely, his future is still to be decided. There is still a chance he could play his testimonial game at the Etihad later this year having left the club.
Even if he does extend his 11-year stay at the Etihad, Kompany has missed 45 games over the last two seasons through injury, equating to over 200 days where he has been unavailable.
So as City look to the future and hand out multiple long-term contracts to their best players, a new captain is an underlying appointment that needs to be made.
Luckily for Pep Guardiola, there is one clear candidate for the role - Raheem Sterling.
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Like Kompany, Sterling leads by example on and off the pitch. He knows the responsibility of being a Premier League footballer for Manchester City, and uses that platform to raise awareness of important social issues.
The England international's stance on media coverage of young black players has been commendable, and there has already been signs of change as a result of his comments.
Sterling has also been a leading voice in the fight against racism in football, and has rightly been praised for his defiant response to abuse directed towards him in games against Chelsea and Montenegro this season.
Then there is his contribution to social issues from his home town, where he clearly is looking to give back to an under-privileged area. If City were to reward him with the armband, he would only continue to set an example set by Kompany off the pitch.
And for all the waves Sterling is creating away from the Etihad, it is important to note how much he has matured since his £57m move from Liverpool in 2015.
Clearly a promising talent when he joined, Sterling has become one of the most dangerous attackers in world football this season - and one of the first names on Guardiola's strongest team sheet.
But perhaps the most respectable thing about Sterling is that he doesn't need an armband to continue doing what he has done over the past couple of years.
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He will carry on scoring important goals and creating chance after chance. And he will not stop championing causes he passionately believes in.
Sterling is approaching the end of his third season with City - the same point of Kompany's career that he took the armband.
Kompany has left big boots to fill when he eventually departs the club, but in Raheem Sterling, City have a perfect replacement.
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