Don’t bet against Vin muscling his way in...
VINCENT Kompany was brought in to ‘rough it’ for City, while John Stones was meant to provide the culture.
And yet it was the skipper who reminded everyone of his enduring quality – and his roots as a midfielder – by pinging sharp passes that had Watford turning on Tuesday night.
That left Stones to go up against the physical threat of Troy Deeney, and he showed that he has Barnsley grit by meeting the big man bruise for bruise.
Kompany’s Blues future is clearly in doubt beyond this season, but the Belgian tends to be at his best when facing up to adversity.
How many times has he been written off as an injury basket-case, and returned to perform at a high level? And how satisfying was it for his legions of Blue admirers when he resurrected his career, just as Pep Guardiola had virtually discounted him as an option?
The manager clearly recognised, in his difficult first season, Kompany’s standing both within the dressing room and with the support.
Kompany’s contract expires at the end of the season, and it will take something exceptional for him to extend his career beyond the current campaign.
He seems to be fourth choice centre-back in the current squad, with Guardiola putting full faith in his two 24-year-olds – Aymeric Laporte and Stones have been his go-to pairing for every big game this season.
In last season’s run-in, the manager had turned to Kompany and Nicolas Otamendi to see the Blues over the line, knowing there is no substitute for experience when things get tight and the vision gets blurred.
Those two have been left to s crap it out to be first stand-in, and Otamendi seems to have an edge in that regard.
Kompany has almost become a specialist. Apart from the Carabao Cup ties, he has been drafted in when Guardiola seeks a peculiarly English solution to an English problem. He was picked to deal with Huddersfield’s hulking 6ft 3in Steve Mounie, Burnley’s bruiser Sam Vokes, and – at Vicarage Road – Watford tough nut Troy Deeney.
He was also picked at Wolves, and Hoffenheim, but the trend is an obvious one – if you need muscle, turn to Kompany. It’s one of several minor compromises Guardiola has made to ensure his successes in Spain and Germany will be reproduced in the different philosophy of English football.
But the skipper has not made a stellar career out of simply sticking his head where it hurts. He came to City as a defensive midfielder, a player who started attacks as well as ended those of the opposition.
Laporte has ensured he is the main man in Guardiola’s defence by combining such quality on the ball with physical prowess.
And Stones has been showing that he also ticks all the boxes.
Now Kompany is, once again, determined to keep up with the young pretenders who he is helping to nurture, and push them to greater heights.
Only a fool would bet against the 32-year-old forcing his way back into the team.