KOMPANY EAGER FOR FIRST LANCASHIRE DERBY

Main Club Sponsor

TICKETS

SHOP

Clarets chief looking forward to his first taste of a Lancashire derby

2022-08-19T15:45:00.000Z

KOMPANY EAGER FOR FIRST LANCASHIRE DERBY

Clarets chief looking forward to his first taste of a Lancashire derby

2022-08-19T15:45:00.000Z

Clarets chief looking forward to his first taste of a Lancashire derby

Vincent Kompany is relishing the prospect of Saturday’s game against Blackpool at Turf Moor. It will be his first taste of a Lancashire derby as Burnley manager.

The Clarets boss sat down with the media on Thursday afternoon at the Burnley Training Centre to discuss the Tangerines test, finding goals, and the challenge of picking his team.

Kompany on derby games:

“I’ve always lived for derbies no matter the shirt I’ve worn in the past. It gives fans something extra to look forward to, and those games usually have a bit more pressure.

“It has to make us grow and I’m hoping the team is out there with a positive performance, and on top of that a positive result.”

Kompany on Blackpool:

“We’ve seen with Watford already that teams can change on the day, so I’m not too attached to what they do.

“In general, the team [Blackpool] has been compact and organised. There’s a good idea behind what they try to do, and they’re good on the ball which makes them dangerous.

KOMPANY EAGER FOR FIRST LANCASHIRE DERBY - Image 1

“It’s a home game though and we’re wanting to reward ourselves with results we’ve missed out on so far for whatever reason. It’s something we’re looking forward to.”

Kompany on teams applying low blocks:

“It’s not just that teams have come and sat behind the ball because we’ve come with big names. This is largely a new squad.

“Of course, you’re a bigger name because you’ve come from the Premier League, but in general, there’s lots of new faces.

“We’ve earned it through runs in behind, being tidy on the ball, being aggressive when we lose it, and covering the ball quickly. That’s how the picture starts to appear.”

Kompany on finding more goals & keeping them out at the other end:

“I’ll take ugly goals as well! I do have a strong desire to have a high goalscoring team, but I know that it’s not something which comes straight away.

“I am of the belief though that you can score from any phase in football. This is one of the moments where we try and find a solution to get into dangerous areas all the time.

KOMPANY EAGER FOR FIRST LANCASHIRE DERBY - Image 2

“We’ve had such positive performances but then been on a knife edge because we’ve not been able to put any distance between us and anyone we’ve played so far.

“In terms of how it looks and the stats, we were on top, but we’ve not been able to do it in the results. That’s where we’re at and we know that we’ve got to keep concentration high. If it’s 1-0 to us, then that’s how it stays.”

Kompany on choosing his side:

“As a coach, you just go with it sometimes. There’s really two speeds you have to consider.

“You’ve got the dynamics of the group who’ve been here for 12 weeks now and have given us the good parts we’ve had this season so far. Then you’ve also got the new players coming in with different ideas and got to integrate them in the right way.

“Some of them are in a new league and some in a new country, so they’ve got to be ready when they do come in.”