Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
DE BRUYNE: THIS IS JUST THE START
Pot-hunter Kompany wants trophy after trophy to make Pep’s men the greatest City team in history
MANCHESTER CITY’S Vincent Kompany has urged backslappers queuing up to hail his team: Don’t put us on a pedestal just yet.
Kompany led City to League Cup final victory over Arsenal – the first of three potential trophies this season for the runaway Premier League leaders, who also have one foot in the Champions League quarter-finals.
Pep Guardiola has been tipped to build a dynasty of success after landing his first trophy as City boss and transforming them back into English football’s leading side.
However, 31-year-old Kompany has been part of the City teams which won the l eague under Roberto Mancini and Manuel Pellegrini only to fail to truly kick on.
Discussing whether this City outfit is at a higher level, the Belgian defender – who scored City’s second goal on Sunday – said: “We’ll have to see when the trophies are coming.
“If we win more and consistently, if we can win the Premier League then go again and again, then this team will be better than the previous one. We have scored hundreds of goals as well with Pellegrini.
“It’s been a feature of this club for many years now.
“I kind of want to keep that hunger in the team. So I don’t want to put people on a pedestal when we haven’t achieved all of our targets. So, for now, well done, keep going.”
Kompany revealed that City’s thrashing of Arsenal was fuelled by a sense of fear following their shock 1-0 FA Cup defeat at Wigan.
He said: “You lose against Wigan and you come into this game thinking all of a sudden two games could cost us two trophies. That wouldn’t have been deserved. This gives us the feeling that we can achieve stuff playing how we do.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to confirm the Premier League and I’d like to see the same focus in the next few games.”
City carry a 4-0 lead into the home leg of their Champions League tie against Basel next week and Kompany said: “There is belief but we are not favourites above the big ones – Real Madrid, Barcelona.
“We’re just trying to fight our way in there and maybe shake things up a little bit.
“But one thing at a time. We have to play Basel first. It’s too early to call it. We have to be careful of saying too much.”