I don't think in this day and age and "captain" really matters. It doesn't really mean anything anymore. Long gone are the days of proper captains. You're Roy Keanes, John Terry's Zidane's etc. Proper leaders. Look at England for example. Harry Kane as captain? Really? He's not a leader. Just an older player so given the armband. Pointless.
You don't need an armband to be a leader. Feel it's more figurative and a showing of seniority. What's better to see is players like Kitch and Grimes showing fight, bottle and heart, that we were lacking at the start of the season.
I like the continental system where the players chose the captain and they act almost like a union rep linking the thoughts of the squad up to management