“If he continues…” – Is Vincent Kompany good enough to replace Pep Guardiola at Man City? The verdict | OneFootball

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Football League World

·7 February 2023

“If he continues…” – Is Vincent Kompany good enough to replace Pep Guardiola at Man City? The verdict

Article image:“If he continues…” – Is Vincent Kompany good enough to replace Pep Guardiola at Man City? The verdict

This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Vincent Kompany has made a sensational start to management in English football and very few people would have imagined his first season at Burnley going quite as well as this, having established a 17-point cushion inside the automatic promotion places with as many matches remaining.


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The style of play that the Belgian has implemented at Turf Moor has similarities to the possession-based approach that Pep Guardiola has taken at Manchester City, including when Vincent Kompany was at the club.

Therefore, it is no surprise to see Kompany being touted as a potential replacement for Guardiola at some stage in the future, in the same way that some expected Frank Lampard to manage Chelsea and possibly even Steven Gerrard to take on the job at Liverpool at one stage.

We gathered the thoughts of a selection of FLW writers to see if they deem Kompany as a standout candidate to replace Guardiola and if he is good enough to manage the club…

Ben Wignall

I think that there will be world class managers with more experience than Kompany that could tempt City before they look towards their former defender for the job.

But if the powers-that-be want a long-term head coach who possesses the same ideals and beliefs of Guardiola, then Kompany would bring a lot to the table.

His Burnley side are playing exactly like City, albeit in the Championship, and he’s more-than proving his worth in the dugout with his tactical know-how and the fact he is improving young players and coaching this Clarets side to dominate the rest of the division.

However, should City part with Pep in 2023, then it could be far too soon for Kompany to jump ship to such a big job with high demands – if things do not go as well as planned then supporters will be put in a tough position when it comes to being unhappy with a man they once revered as their captain on the pitch.

We will know more about Kompany’s management skills when he inevitably has Burnley in the Premier League next season, and if he continues to show the same nous he has in his first year in charge at Turf Moor, then he will no doubt be a shoe-in for the City job in the future.

No I don’t think he would be.

Putting aside his previous Manchester City connections, I don’t think he’s quite done enough yet to warrant such a job.

Perhaps in a year or two if he was to establish Burnley in the Premier League and have them playing exciting football still then I may have a different answer.

But, right now, no, I wouldn’t consider him the standout candidate for the job if Guardiola were to depart the Etihad.

Marcus Ally

I would like to see Kompany prove himself somewhere else after Burnley, before potentially taking on the job at City.

Guardiola’s contract runs for two more seasons at the Etihad, but if he wins the Champions League this season, it would not be a surprise to see him go out on a high.

If Kompany can replicate the trajectory of a club like Brighton and Hove Albion with Burnley, then he is in the conversation to replace Guardiola, but at the moment that is a long way off.

Should City want to continue with a similar style of play post-Guardiola, then it narrows down the number of managers that they could appoint, and that could work in Kompany’s favour.

But, they will want to avoid fast-tracking the Belgian just because of his playing career, and observing his progress at another top level club first could be the smartest option.

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