Football management is all about finding the next big thing - and Bayern Munich feel that is Vincent Kompany.
They’re not alone in their opinion of Kompany and Brighton considered him, weeks before they sacked Roberto De Zerbi, while Burnley’s relegation has not shaken Alan Pace’s total belief in him.
It’s easy to laugh at this idea, given Burnley managed just five Premier League wins as they returned to the Championship, but that is just one of his four seasons as a manager.
In his first two, after retiring from playing in 2020, he helped turn around his beloved Anderlecht, where he began his career as a player, leading them to fourth and then third in the Belgian league.
Kompany had to completely overhaul Burnley in the wake of relegation when he took over in June 2022 and made some astute signings in Ian Maatsen, who is about to play in the Champions League Final with Borussia Dortmund, and Nathan Tella, who has walked the Bundesliga with Bayern Leverkusen.
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Kompany, 38, changed everything about Burnley under Sean Dyche and they won the Championship, amassing 101 points, playing expansive, possession-based football.
He had to rebuild Burnley again last summer as Maatsen and Tella’s loans ended and he spoke to all 15 of their signings. They all came, not so much because of a desire to represent the Clarets, but because they wanted to play for him. Despite splashing out £92million, his recruitment did not work and several, including Mike Tresor, and Michael Obafemi, flopped.
Ian Maatsen shone on loan at Burnley - and is now heading to a Champions League Final (Getty Images)But Bayern are looking past that at Kompany’s refusal to ditch his footballing principles when things got tough. They see a manager, who speaks German from his two years with Hamburg, whose side plays out from the back, covets possession and creates chances.
They also see a coach, who is well used to the spotlight and being centre stage at a big club, who leads from the front. With Bayern’s huge resources, they see a man who can win them back the Bundesliga after the disappointment of this trophyless season.
Kompany, the son of an immigrant from the Democratic Republic of Congo, had a tough upbringing in Brussels and is intelligent and articulate and boasts an MBA from Manchester Business School. He is not interested in hiding behind his celebrity and is a 24/7 coach, always thinking about football. Burnley and Pace are gutted to lose Kompany and his departure is an even bigger blow than relegation.
Burnley chiefs will be gutted to lose the Belgian (Getty Images)They have stuck to the three-year plan they devised when they hired Kompany in 2022. They were prepared to endure the lows of this season because they ultimately believed they were on course under Kompany to be a Premier League club next summer by the end of their third year.
Pace never once considered sacking Kompany, even though the Clarets were in the bottom three all season, because he was certain they were on the right track.
Players will have to be sold this summer, and Newcastle like England Under-21 goalkeeper James Trafford, but Pace believes they have a squad to win promotion next season.
Now they are back to square one and Pace and his board must find a coach to continue on this road.
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