Vincent Kompany caused a surprise in England just a few days after winning the double with FC Bayern. The Belgian was the guest of honour at Pep Guardiola’s grand farewell celebrations at Manchester City on Monday evening – and was enthusiastically received by the fans at the Etihad Stadium
After Manchester City had first organized a big bus parade for all the title-winning teams of the season in the afternoon, the big „after party“ followed in the Skyblues‘ stadium in the evening
The focus was of course on Pep Guardiola, who was officially bid farewell after ten years as Manchester City coach
Kompany brings trophy to the stage
Numerous former players who won titles under the Spaniard were invited to honor Guardiola, including Vincent Kompany
The current Bayern coach played for Manchester City for a total of eleven years between 2008 and 2019 and even captained the 2018 and 2019 champion teams under Guardiola
As part of the show, Kompany brought the Premier League trophy onto the stage on behalf of the 2018 champions and was celebrated frenetically by the fans
Vincent Kompany in Manchester this evening for Pep Guardiola’s farewell party
pic.twitter.com/Uq1wafBcG1– Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) May 25, 2026
Even before the DFB Cup final against VfB Stuttgart, Kompany had spoken at length about the importance of Guardiola for his own coaching career. „It was a gift to be able to work with him,“ explained the Belgian
Guardiola in particular had awakened in him the desire to become a coach himself. „I know that I owe this hunger to become a coach to the years I spent with Pep,“ said Kompany
According to the Bayern coach, it was not just about tactics. „There is far too much talk about tactics. It was about this absolute will to win everything,“ explained the 40-year-old
ManCity rumors quickly put to rest
In recent months, Kompany had even been repeatedly touted as a possible successor to Guardiola in England
FC Bayern, however, are not interested in such speculation and president Herbert Hainer recently made it unmistakably clear that Kompany is in Munich for the long term. „There is no transfer fee for Kompany, he is not for sale,“ Hainer told BILD
The Belgian still has a contract with the record champions until 2029 and after two years at FC Bayern, Kompany has long since become one of the most important figures at the club
With the championship and DFB Cup victory, the Belgian led Munich back to national dominance and impressed not only on a sporting level, but also on a personal level
The emotional performance in Manchester showed once again how highly regarded the Bayern coach continues to be internationally.