Vincent Kompany will turn thirty-three years of age come April. The veteran defender has had various injury issues in recent seasons and he’s only made fourteen appearances so far this term.

Yet for me, the Manchester City captain is still invaluable and tying him down to a new deal should be a priority for the Premier League champions.

According to the Daily Mail, The Citizens are close to agreeing a new one year contract with the centre-back. The media outlet state that the player will likely accept a pay cut and that he’ll be given a testimonial game next season.

So why is it important to re-sign the centre-half who hasn’t played in twenty or more league games since the 2014-15 season? 

Well because Kompany is such an inspirational leader and has a great calming influence on the rest of the team.

When he’s fully fit, the Belgian international is still probably the best defender at the club. The backline certainly seems to play with more confidence when he’s in it.

In his nine top flight outings this season; Vincent has a 93% passing success record, wins on averages 2 aerial duels per game and makes 3.3 clearances too. (Source – Whoscored).

In the biggest of games, if fit, he’ll give you 100% and he will probably deliver more times than not!

Now Kompany might not be at the stage where he can play every game and youngsters John Stones and Almeric Laporte might be Pep Guardiola’s preferred choice at centre-back but have no doubts the Club’s captain has helped those two progress. He’s the leader that will have talked them through games and the voice in the dressing room that will have encouraged both young defenders to become greater players.

Yes Pep loves young talent, they’re easier to mould and they are hungry to learn and impress. But the Spanish coach is also keen on having experienced foot-soldiers within his ranks to help guide the squad through difficult moments. He had Carles Puyol and Xavi at FC Barcelona and he had Philip Lahm and Xabi Alonso at Bayern Munich.

At City he has Kompany, David Silva and Sergio Aguero. These three veteran players go all the way back to City’s first Premier League triumph in 2012. They’ve gone on to win two more league titles plus enjoy success in the FA Cup and League Cup. They’re winners and Pep Guardiola respects that and encourages his other stars to learn from these extremely positive experienced pros.

Last month, the Man City boss told Sky Sports how important he believes Vincent Kompany to be:

“He is our captain, he has spent 11 years here.”

“Every central defender has quality but no doubt Vincent is special.

“The charisma, the winning, it is incredible. He is one of the best central defenders I have ever seen.”

You can’t get much better endorsements than that one from one of the best managers in world football.

Just having Vincent Kompany inside the Manchester City dressing room and talking to the media about the club is hugely beneficial. He really is a top player and a class act.

The club know he’s not finished and they know that he’s already a City legend.

That’s why I think it is so important to all parties that he stays at the Etihad and helps the club for at least another year!

Posted on February 14th, 2019 by scott
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