Vincent Kompany has talked up the rivalry between Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho, suggesting that the old adversaries will throw “hot sauce” when their sides meet in the Manchester derby next season.
Kompany is looking forward to working under Guardiola at Manchester City, while Mourinho has taken charge of Manchester United, adding an extra sense of drama to next season’s Premier League.
The sides meet at Old Trafford on September 10th, before facing each other again at the Etihad on February 25th, while they’ll also do battle in a pre- season friendly.
Kompany told ESPN FC: “For me it’s always United vs. City, first and foremost. That is bigger than any names in the game, to me. It’s never bad to throw a little bit of hot sauce on the barbecue when you’ve already got it on full flames but it’s already one of the biggest fixtures in world football.
“If there’s a little bit of a personal battle as well then that will only add to a fixture that is already great in itself.”
City have already made one major signing ahead of next season, with midfielder Ilkay Gundogan arriving from Borussia Dortmund, and there will surely be further acquisitions before the campaign gets underway.
As far as Kompany is concerned, the defender will simply be hoping to enjoy an injury-free campaign and establish himself as a key player in Guardiola’s side. The 30-year-old, who had an average pass accuracy of 84% in the Premier League this season, was ruled out of Belgium’s Euro 2016 campaign through injury.
It remains to be seen whether Guardiola will seek to revitalise his central- defensive options, but there’s a strong chance that he could do so, especially with Eliaquim Mangala failing to live up to expectations so far.
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