Pep talk spot on as Vincent turns heads

AFTER Burnley were crushed 6-0 by Manchester City last month, Pep Guardiola was quizzed on the future of Vincent Kompany.

- Chris Dunlavy

“One day, he will be sitting in this seat,” said the Spaniard. “I don’t care what he says. I don’t care what you say. I don’t care what anybody says. If you want to make a bet with me, I will bet you anything. And I will win.”

Pep’s conviction is well founded. Kompany is a legend at the Etihad, an adopted Mancunian with a statue outside the East Stand and a place in the hearts of every supporter.

More relevantly, Guardiola has walked in his shoes. Born in Catalonia, he joined Barcelona at 13 and left aged 31. Throughout those 18 years he was steeped in the teachings of Johan Cruyff, whose philosophy and influence became synonymous with Barcelona following his return to the Nou Camp as manager in 1988.

Only a handful of subsequent Barca managers could not claim some connection to Cruyff, a deliberate strategy by the club to establish a seamless stylistic lineage.

It was why Guardiola, despite minimal coaching experience, was selected ahead of Jose Mourinho when Frank Rijkaard departed in 2008. He knew Cruyff. He loved Cruyff. And the style that conquered Europe was Total Football, turbocharged.