DUTCH OF CLASS
Kompany: Don’t knock Erik, he created a special team at Ajax
MAN UNITED v BURNLEY
Premier League: KO 3pm
DAVID ANDERSON
VINCENT KOMPANY has mounted a stout defence of beleaguered Erik ten Hag, claiming he is one of the best managers in the world.
Ten Hag is expected to be sacked by Manchester United at the end of the season after failing to meet the minimum target of qualifying for the Champions League.
Kompany remembers the coach who made his name at Ajax and says the Dutchman has always stood out for him.
The pair meet at Old Trafford today and Burnley boss Kompany said: “When his team at Ajax were playing, it was something special. They were up there with the best teams I’ve ever seen.
“Most of those teams in recent times have been associated with Pep Guardiola but there were other managers as well and he was one of them.”
Kompany studied Ajax when they reached the Champions League semifinals in 2019 when they would have faced Manchester City had the Blues not been edged out by Tottenham in the quarter-finals.
He hailed Ten Hag as a “reference coach” for other managers. “There was that moment when we were close to playing them in the semifinal of the Champions League but there was VAR intervention and Tottenham ended up going through,” he said. “I think he’s had some reference teams for many other coaches in the world.
He wasn’t just about good players, he was about the ideas behind the teams and what they were doing.
“It’s not like we go out for coffees or anything but I have followed his trajectory and he’s one of those reference coaches. That’s the reality of it. It goes a little bit against the trend right now but I’m telling the truth.”
Burnley have climbed to three points from safety after losing just one of their last seven games and Kompany (with Ten Hag, circle) says they are in with a fighting chance of staying up after being written off for most of the season. “Like I’ve said since the beginning, just give us one opportunity to fight for something and that’s all we need,” he said. “That’s why we spend so much energy every day in training, trying to get this team to the best possible level.”
Bookies still think the Clarets are certainties to go down, quoting them at 1-14. Luton are 2-7 and Nottingham Forest are 6-4.
Next weekend Kompany’s men are at home to faltering Newcastle followed by a trip to Spurs. On the final day of the season they host Forest, who are just a three points above them.
Burnley were beaten 1-0 by Manchester United at Turf Moor earlier in the season despite enjoying 62 percent of the possession. Bruno Fernandes got the United winner.
His Ajax team were up there with the best teams I have ever seen