A decorated and dominant defender as a player, Kompany is now hoping to emulate that success as a coach with Bayern München.
Vincent Kompany is used to success. Touted as a star during his formative years at Anderlecht, where he won two league titles, he realised his potential at Manchester City. The defender scooped four Premier League titles and two FA Cups and was club captain for most of his time in England.
Now, following spells in charge at Anderlecht and Burnley, the 38-year-old returns to the UEFA Champions League – one of the few trophies that eluded him during his playing career – as Bayern go in search of a seventh European crown.
I come from Brussels, and we speak so many different languages. Just in Brussels alone, you could be speaking French, Dutch, maybe a little bit of Arabic or Lingala from Congo, Italian, Spanish, it's all mixed. And you find that unless you communicate with people, nobody will do what you want them to do, and that's a big part of what we learn. I take it with me when I communicate with the group.
Communication is also very individual, so there are some things, some messages, that can only be said in a certain way to certain people. But then there are core messages, where they have to accept as well that you are going to communicate in the way that is necessary to achieve your goal. It's crucial, and it's not going to be any less in the future. We try and stay on that line.
The aims are very simple. You always want the highest level. For us, whenever we speak about any game, any trophy, it's always about trying to win the competition, and the Champions League is obviously the most difficult one. With the teams who have won it in recent years, there are a few who will obviously aim for the same, but it's a special venue for the final and there is a special feeling here about the Champions League.
