Manager’s grounded attitude has helped the free-scoring German giants set up a tantalising Champions League showdown and de facto final
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f you thought that was good, wait until you have done it at Ewood Park. While everyone else struggled to compose themselves after watching a modern classic unfold between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, it was Vincent Kompany who supplied the cooling balm. He had just taken Bayern back to the Champions League semi-finals in scintillating fashion, another feat to justify the decision to take him from Burnley two years ago. Not many managers have breathed such rarefied air within days of turning 40. For Kompany, though, it sat snugly alongside the snappy Lancashire climate.
“I remember we beat Blackburn twice with Burnley,” he said, having been asked whether Wednesday night marked a crowning achievement in his coaching career. “Nobody in this room will want to compare it with the game today, but it was amazing. I experienced so much as a player and that was incredible. For Bayern this game is an amazing feeling, but I don’t think you wait for Real Madrid to say ‘This is the best’. You have to get it from other things as well.”
In fairness the second of those victories against Blackburn, 1-0 on their rivals’ turf, gave Burnley the Championship title in 2022-23. Nobody needs a nuanced understanding of internecine disputes in the north-west to grasp the emotion associated with that. Kompany also referenced defeating Standard Liège while in charge of Anderlecht and the point was simple enough: everything, no matter what, means the most when you are immersed in it.
