KOMPANY IS SHOUTING THE ODDS
VINCENT KOMPANY is taking heart from Manchester City’s most impossible triumph as he attempts to keep Burnley up against all the odds.
Burnley are seven points from safety ahead of today’s daunting home clash with title-chasing Arsenal.
But Kompany says no one believed City would win the Premier League in 2012 when they trailed QPR 2-1 with just minutes of the season remaining.
Sergio Aguero scored one of the most famous goals in the club’s history to seal that most unlikely of successes (top) and Kompany says he has made a career out of upsetting the odds.
“I experienced a moment in my life when we had to score two goals in three minutes to win the league,” said the Burnley boss. “What are the statistics of that happening? What are the odds of happening?
“It’s happened consistently in my life. What are the odds of a young kid from Brussels, from a diverse background, making it into the most difficult league in the world and lifting trophies? What are the odds of that?
“So the consistent message is to believe because one thing is guaranteed: if you give up, you get nothing.”
Kompany insists he is not thinking about relegation, even though director JJ Watt said it would be “irresponsible” of them not to consider it.
The Clarets boss says Watt is referring to board meetings in the summer when the directors assessed the implications of staying up and going down. “It’s really important for me to stress that these plans were made back in the summer, what it would mean if we stayed up and what it would mean if we went down,” he said.
“Once the season starts, it just takes all your energy and focus and attention to just be locked in.
“So right now it’s not a word I want to use. But we haven’t shied away from it, which is probably why the club is so calm and probably why we have that togetherness here. The players still show that as well.”
Burnley plan to stick with Kompany, regardless of what league they are in next season, and he insists he is not thinking about whether his position is safe. “The goal is always to win the next game,” he said. “The rest is not something I think about.”
The only three teams Burnley have beaten in the Premier League this season are Luton, Sheffield United and Fulham. They met Arsenal at the Emirates back in November and were beaten 3-1.