Football: Soccer-Kompany to demand aggression and bravery from Bayern players

MUNICH, Germany (Reuters) – Bayern Munich’s new coach Vincent Kompany outlined his playing style for the German champions on Thursday, saying he will demand absolute aggression and bravery from his players.

Belgian Kompany has signed a deal until 2027 after the Belgian parted ways with Burnley following their relegation from the Premier League.

Bayern, Bundesliga champions in the previous 11 seasons, finished third behind Bayer Leverkusen and VfB Stuttgart.

They also failed to win domestic or European silverware for the first time in more than a decade, leading to the departure of coach Thomas Tuchel, which was announced in February.

“For my side it is simple. What you coach is who you are as a person,” Kompany told a news conference on Thursday.

“My personality is I grew I grew up on the streets of Brussels, I was in the academy of Anderlecht where from the age of six to 20 you have to win everything.”

The arrival of Kompany, who has Bundesliga experience having played for Hamburg SV and speaks German, ended a months-long search for the Tuchel’s successor.

Several candidates decided to remain in their current jobs, including Leverkusen’s Xabi Alonso, former coach Julian Nagelsmann and Austrian Ralf Rangnick.

“I want the players of Bayern to be really brave on the ball, to have personality. I want the team to be aggressive, to represent those two things,” Kompany said.

“Absolutely brave when they have the ball and make a decision and absolutely aggressive, something they carry every minute of the game. Always,” said Kompany.

In his short managerial career, Kompany, who played 360 matches for Manchester City and won four Premier League titles, has garnered a reputation for playing free-flowing and possession-based football.

He began his coaching career at Belgian club Anderlecht before joining Burnley in 2022, where his approach worked well in the second-tier Championship as they secured promotion with seven games to spare.

However, Burnley’s insistence on sticking to that style against teams of a higher calibre in the Premier League meant they found it hard going in the top flight and were relegated after finishing 19th with 24 points and only five wins all season.

(Reporting by Karolos Grohmann, editing by Ed Osmond)