VINCENT Kompany will be pleased if his Bayern Munich side produce the sort of exceptional all-round performance they are more than capable of when they take on Celtic at Parkhead in the first leg of the Champions League knockout round play-off tomorrow night.
Yet, on the first occasion the Belgian great played at the world-famous Glasgow ground he was, in time at least, delighted that he had an absolute howler.
The centre-half made his first appearance away from home in Europe’s premier club competition as a fresh-faced teenager way back in 2003 and was helpless to prevent visitors Anderlecht from slumping to a 3-1 defeat.
Kompany’s poor personal display that evening put legendary Scottish manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who was looking to strengthen his defence at Manchester United at the time due to the FA ban that Rio Ferdinand was facing for failing to attend a drugs test, off signing him.
However, the Bayern manager was ultimately relieved that his potential move to Old Trafford fell through as he went on to join Manchester City and become one of the English giants’ all-time greats.
Read more:
“I was a young player and that was a first experience for me,” he said at his pre-match press conference at Parkhead last night. “I remember it being a special night. Before the game I thought, ‘Yes, we're going to make it (into the knockout rounds)’. Then the reality was different. I think we could have lost 5-0 that night.
“I don't want to drag too much nostalgia into it, but I think I was fortunate to play poorly. I remember that Sir Alex Ferguson came to watch me that night. If I had played a good game, maybe he might have come in with a bid for me at the time. So I'm really happy that I ended up on the blue side of Manchester.”
The 89-times capped internationalist believes the £11m signing, who is set to start for the hosts against their star-studded opponents tomorrow evening, is in a good place to further his career.
“I'm always happy to see Belgian players do well,” he said. “If I remember well, I think I've seen him even play in the youth teams for Bruges. When I was in Antwerp, I used to watch the youth team games a lot. It was always good to watch them and imagine what their progression would be.
“Arne is 21 now, so he's in the right place. It's the right level. You get a taste of Champions League football, you get a taste of must-win football in the league as well. I think for young players, sometimes as important as the talent is the pathway. It doesn't always need to start with the top clubs in the world.
“You start with top clubs in different leagues and that gives you that winning mentality. Then you progress if you're ready to progress. He's got a good pathway. Many of the players from the Belgian generation that did well were actually at his age in similar places. So it's a good starting point for him.”
Read more:
-
Rodgers delighted as ‘super professional’ Maeda cleared for Bayern tie
-
‘I truly back us against anybody’ – Celtic defender eyes Bayern upset
Meanwhile, Manuel Neuer, the Bayern captain and former Germany goalkeeper, has admitted he is looking forward to playing at Parkhead for the first time in his career and with meeting up with his Celtic counterpart Kasper Schmeichel once again.
"It is an honour to play against him,” he said. "In our careers we kept meeting, we kept talking. I met his dad [Manchester United great Peter] around the Champions League matches and I always talk to him as a goalkeeper. It's always something special to meet someone my age who is still playing."
Neuer, though, knows that the six-time European champions will need to nullify the threat which his countryman Nicolas Kuhn, a former Bayern Munich II player, will pose in this double header if they want to keep alive their hopes of reaching the final at the Allianz Arena.
"Our ambition is always to play the final, no matter where it takes place. It is always something special. But of course it is special for us that it takes place in Munich again. Everyone is excited about that game, fans, staff.
"But it is about daily work we have to make. We have two games against Celtic and 180 minutes. We have to be the better team to get where we want. We have to take it one step at a time."
