Pep ‘made me believe I could be a coach’, says Kompany
BERLIN: Bayern Munich coach Vincent Kompany said former mentor Pep Guardiola, who announced on Friday he is leaving Manchester City, gave him the belief to become a manager. Speaking in Berlin ahead of Saturday’s German Cup final against Stuttgart, Kompany — who captained City under Guardiola for three seasons — said working with the Catalan coach was “a gift.” “I have my own personality and my own character, but the trust and belief that I could become a coach: for that, I owe gratitude to Pep,” Kompany said. “And that is just how great his influence is. “I maybe wasn’t his best friend in the dressing room, or maybe I wasn’t always loved, but I had an incredible belief in his style of leadership.” In a decade at City, the former Barcelona and Bayern manager won the Premier League six times and the Champions League alongside a glittering array of silverware. Kompany won back-to-back Premier League titles under Guardiola in 2018 and 2019. Since taking over as Bayern boss in 2024, the Belgian has led the club to two Bundesliga titles in a row. He can grab a third major honor as coach this weekend. Kompany said the public misunderstood Guardiola and his focus on tactics. “Far too much is said about tactics or technique or whatever else.