Sport

Man City legend Vincent Kompany gives first interviews as new Bayern Munich manager

An elite coach in the making or too much too soon?

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 30th May 2024

Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany has been officially unveiled as the new Bayern Munich manager and has now given his first interview and press conference in the job.

The former Belgian footballer and Premier League veteran spent 11 seasons at Man City, eight of them as captain, before going on to become player-manager at Anderlecht and then the Burnley boss since 2022.

Having won the EFL Championship in his first season with the club, Kompany has been touted by many as one of the most promising individuals among the next generation of coaches. However, the appointment has left many slightly puzzled and wondering whether he’s skipped ahead too many steps.

Nevertheless, the German giants pulled the trigger on acquiring the 38-year-old’s services, giving him a three-year contract, and now the ex-Man City stalwart has opened up on what he hopes to bring to the massive role, with Munich having won a record 32 Bundesliga titles.

“It’s a privilege and an honour”, he said in a sit down with his new employers. “I’m excited, so my feeling and my energy is really positive. I’m really looking forward to working with the players, the staff, and hopefully [I can] give everything that the fans love to see about this club.”

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Explaining his brand of football and its roots in his upbringing on the streets of Brussels, he said: “We love the ball; we’re creative – I like players who are brave on the ball but also I was always a very aggressive player, so I like the team to be aggressive. That’s what suits my personality”.

He went on to describe the club as “an institution” and that he’s simply looking forward to working with people and building a team, insisting that after that “the rest will follow”. He also said in his first press conference that he will soon assess those “hungry” enough to represent such an iconic shirt.

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Kompany failed to steer Burnley away from relegation in his debut Premier League season, leading many to question why Bayern were so quick to give him the top job given that he’s still relatively unproven, especially at the top level.

Sky Germany’s Felix Fischer, for instance, was quick to state that no matter how much optimism there is around him potential, “you have to win titles” if you want to stay in post at a club like Bayern Munich, though there will likely be some added patience with the young coach.

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On the other hand, the likes of former manager Pep Guardiola have spoken highly of Kompany’s prospect, with Fabrizio Romano reporting that Bayern spoke with the Blues boss before the appointment and labelled him a “talented coach, a smart guy” and an “ideal candidate for the job.”

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The club sacked Champions League winner and former Chelsea manager Thomas Tuchel after he failed to win the title last season, falling short of Xabi Alonso’s ‘invincible’ side, and are said to have paid Burnley a fee of £10.2 million in compensation to bring him in, so they clearly have faith in his future.

A highly-admired centre-back before he became a coach, Kompany insisted he had “a lot of interest” from different clubs” and that wasn’t in the least bit surprised by such a significant offer so early in his career, adding: “I live my job so intensively that I don’t have much time for that. At top clubs like Bayern, you have to stand together internally. What the outside world thinks doesn’t matter, I don’t care.”

He certainly looked dominant in the English second tier and perhaps with an already-established elite squad, not to mention much more spending power behind him in the transfer window, we might just get to see why Bayern Munich are so excited about Vincent Kompany.

You can watch his first full press conference HERE.

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Featured Images — Bayern Munich (via YouTube) Mike Serigrapher (via Flickr)

Sport

Is Marcus Rashford really gearing up to leave Manchester United in January?

Danny Jones Danny Jones Is Marcus Rashford leaving Manchester United?

Marcus Rashford has been one of the best homegrown talents at Manchester United in recent years and a fan favourite ever since he broke onto the scene back in 2016, but things haven’t been going so smoothly of late and it now looks like he could be leaving the club after nearly two decades.

Despite hitting the heights of 30 goals during the 2022/23 campaign, Rashford‘s output over the past couple of seasons has dipped and he has been known as more of a ‘purple-patch’ player throughout most of his time as a senior player at Old Trafford.

There is nothing United fans want more than to see the Wythenshawe winger rediscover his form and go on another one of those streaks as a fresh chapter begins under the new head coach, Rúben Amorim, but it looks as though Rashford could be gearing up to call it a day in the iconic red shirt.

Now 27 years old and entering what would be traditionally seen as his peak for most footballers, the number 10 told journalist Henry Winter that he is “ready for a new challenge”, which could very well signal a move away from Man United in the upcoming transfer window.

Having spent a day off with the veteran sports writer this week, the pair visited his old primary school Button Lane to hand out hundreds of Christmas presents, watching kids play on the football pitch he helped fund and once again tackle the issue of food poverty in Greater Manchester and beyond.

As Winter goes on to explain in his lengthy post on X, Rashford woke up to headlines speculating that his boyhood club have now put him “up for sale” and are reportedly willing to listen to offers in January.

Although the Manc footballer didn’t categorically outline a desire to leave, nor to stay necessarily, he did say that he feels “next steps” are due but that “when I leave it’s going to be no hard feelings. You’re not going to have any negative comments from me about Manchester United. That’s me as a person.

“If I know that a situation is already bad I’m not going to make it worse”, he continued. “I’ve seen how other players have left in the past and I don’t want to be that person. When I leave I’ll make a statement and it will be from me”, adding that he’ll always be a Red, “100%”.

So how likely is it that Rashford will leave the club in January? Well, being left out of the Manchester derby – a decision he made no bones about being disappointed over – clearly signals that Amorim wasn’t totally happy with his overall preparation but the Portuguese manager did respond in a shrewd manner:

Agreeing with the United star, who at one time was considered one of England’s hottest prospects and is still unplayable at times when operating at his very best, the 39-year-old was mindful not to respond defensively to his comments but turn them into what he hopes will be shared motivation.

It’s also worth noting that Rashford wasn’t the only one dropped from the derby-winning team: Alejandro Garnacho, undoubtedly one of the club’s most promising talents who already delivers game-changing performances as his teammate has done so many times, was also left out for one reason or another.

Amorim reiterated that each week can be a clean slate and that he intends to observe everything from how players train and eat to how they dress and carry themselves around Carrington, especially when it comes to “engaging with the [rest of the] squad”, so this seemingly wasn’t an effort target the two.

The 39-year-old also assured that his decision wasn’t a disciplinary issue in any way, as Rashford hasn’t been left out of matchday squads or at the very least benched by former boss, Erik ten Hag, for turning up late to a team meeting and a rogue night-out in Belfast.

All that being said, while it appears there is no personal issue with Rashford, another element that will no doubt factor into whether he decides to leave United will be his increasingly fractious relationship with sections of the fan base, having shared more “despicable” direct messages with Winter too.

‘Enough is enough’: Marcus Rashford calls out fans for ‘months’ of abuse
Rashford has called out abusive supporters in the past and perhaps the endless online vitriol could result in him leaving United.

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Lastly, it’s also important to consider whether or not he is the right fit for Amorim’s unwavering 3-4-3 system that he is starting to implement on the current collection players.

Rashford has pace, skill, finishing ability and a great passing range, but his best position has always been cutting in off the flanks and unless he can nail down that spot as the left-sided number 10 (a position where there is already plenty of competition), the only other option is as a striker or a left wing-back.

Now, with lots of other attacking and creative midfielders in contention for those players sat just behind and on either side of the number nine, and two big-money forwards rotating up front, it will likely be a scrap every week to get in that starting XI.

Moreover, with Amad Diallo already showcasing exactly the kind of energy levels and persistent pressing that Amorim wants from his two 10s and his wing-backs, in particular – not to mention reaping the rewards for his efforts against Man City and in previous matches – it’s might be a case of can/will Rashford match that amount of running when asked.

Perhaps the better question is, do you think it’s time for Rashford to take on that new challenge away from Manchester United and do you expect to see him leaving in the January transfer window?

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Featured Images — soccer.ru (via Wikimedia Commons)

Sport

Tyson Fury says he hasn’t spoken to his wife in ‘three months’ whilst preparing for Usyk rematch

Danny Jones Danny Jones Tyson Fury hasn't spoke to his wife Paris for three months preparing for Usyk 2 rematch

Tyson Fury says hasn’t spoken to his wife Paris for three whole months while preparing for the much-anticipated Oleksandr Usyk rematch.

The Manc fighter is set to face the Ukrainian counterpart in the ‘Undisputed’ sequel, simply dubbed Fury vs Usyk 2, which will result in one unified heavyweight champion of the world.

Usyk’s victory over the Wythenshawe-born boxer back in May saw him take that title for the first time since 1999 (the only man to have done so in the four-belt era) but with the rematch nearly upon us, Fury could be set to steal that title away from him.

With that in mind, the pressure has clearly been on ever since he lost the first bout and, according to Tyson himself, he hasn’t spoken to his wife Paris Fury for virtually a quarter of a year as part of his immensely strict training camp.

Speaking to TNT Sports ahead of the match this weekend, he claimed: “I haven’t spoke to Paris in three months – not a word. [I’ve] not spoke to anyone, I haven’t been on my phone.”

Explaining that he simply removed all distractions to get his head in the right space ahead of the title decider, ‘The Gypsy King’ has been known to isolate himself from the rest of the world before a big fight in the past, but cutting contact with your spouse of 10 years and partner for nearly two decades is wild.

The 36-year-old went on to detail that in order to give himself the best shot at winning, he couldn’t keep switching between “beast mode to dad mode to wife mode” and so on.

In separate interviews with other outlets ahead of the highly-awaited rematch, Fury has made various other big claims about what boxing fans can expect from his own performance, including an admission that he needs to be “more focused this time and not do as much showboating” in the ring.

Nevertheless, he also assured the media that he isn’t a quitter and has promised he will not just “f*** up” his 37-year-old opponent but “retire” him. Usyk, on the other hand, has warned he will be a different challenge than the last time the two faced each other, predicting a knockout victory too.

Having downed Tyson more than once the last time around, he’s understandably confident of his chances.

Bold words from the pair of them, indeed, but this is all just part and parcel of the usual pre-fight build-up; all we really know is that Usyk won the previous face-off and Fury is the one with the point to prove.

While younger brother Tommy Fury recently had to pull out of his scheduled fight against Darren Till, during which tensions seriously boiled over during the first press conference, it looks as though there is no risk of more cancellations and any more ‘will they won’t they?’ antics between these two at least.

The rematch, or ‘Fury vs Usyk 2: Undisputed’ to give use its full title (the latest in Saudi Arabia’s growing fight scene and live sports programming as part of Riyadh Season) takes place this Saturday, 21 December, with the two set to clash once again from 10:25 GMT.

Who do you think will emerge victorious from this one and, more importantly, when do you think we’ll see the third and ‘final’ fight when they inevitably demand a trilogy?…

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Featured Images — paul62_2017 (via Flickr)/Netflix (via screenshot)

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