Vincent Kompany has lost the “untouchable” status for Manchester City he enjoyed at the start of the season, with Manuel Pellegrini refusing to confirm his captain will be reinstated for Sunday’s derby at Manchester United.
Kompany has not started for City since 15 September when he limped out of a 2-1 defeat by Juventus with a calf injury. Before the recent international break Pellegrini was clear that Kompany could not represent Belgium in their two Euro 2016 qualifiers. However, Kompany started the second one, against Israel, and played 58 minutes. Although this will have left Pellegrini bemused, he denied punishing Kompany by naming him as a replacement for last Saturday’s Premier League game with Bournemouth and Wednesday’s Champions League match against Sevilla.
In City’s opening six games, up to the point of the injury sustained against Juventus, Kompany led a defence that conceded only one goal. This caused Pellegrini to view Kompany and Eliaquim Mangala, his defensive partner, as certainties in his first-choice lineup.
However, before the 170th derby, the manager said: “The importance is the moment of the player. Maybe if you remember last season we finished the last six games without Vincent and we won all six, conceding only two. So the moments of the player is the most important thing.
“At the beginning of the season I said Vincent and Mangala were untouchable because they were playing very well. We bought Otamendi and he didn’t play because they were doing so well. After that there’s a lot of things why the performances of the players change and it is my duty to choose the best 11 every game.”
Pellegrini maintains that Kompany required a week of training with the squad after the international break to be match-fit. The Belgian has now had this time yet Pellegrini bristled when asked if Kompany was ready to start against United. “I’m finished talking about Vincent, I’ve said all I can about him.”
Pressed again, he said: “I repeat what I said, I don’t need to explain it all again. He was five weeks without playing and on his return he played 45 minutes. He’s fit. We’ll see when he’ll return. But I always say this team is better with Vincent than without him.”
City are training at 11am on Saturday and Pellegrini will not choose his side until then. Of his relationship with the captain, Pellegrini said: “I don’t have any problem with Vincent Kompany. Every week I have to choose the starting XI that I think is the best for the game, and the other players must wait. It’s exactly the same for all the players in the squad.
“I’m not punishing Vincent and I don’t have any problem with my relationship with him. After one month or five weeks without playing or training, you must be fit but you’re not ready to play an important game. It’s important for him to work some days before he returns to the team.”
Pellegrini also said that winning a trophy is satisfying only if the side play exciting football. The Chilean can expect to lose his job next summer if there has been a second successive season with no silverware but it appears he will not compromise this principle.
“If we win silverware everyone will say we’ve improved,” he said. “But for me we can win it or not but after that I’ll analyse what we’ve improved. I don’t know the way I will be judged [by the club]. Maybe the way I analyse is different. Maybe I can be happy but not winning a title. But I could win a title and everyone will say we played very well and I can be not happy with the way we do it. Everyone thinks if you win the title you are the best team but to me it doesn’t work like that.
“It is essential, without doubt [to play well always]. Maybe at the end of the season you tell me you are going to win the title but by not playing the way you want in the last three or four games [then] of course I’d want to win the title. But to prepare to win the title, this team must play the right way or it’s not a successful season.”
