Burnley hire ex-Man City captain Kompany as manager

By Can Erozden

ANKARA (AA) – English football club Burnley appointed former Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany as their new manager on Tuesday.

"Burnley Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of Vincent Kompany as first-team manager," the club said in a statement.

In the 2022-23 season, Burnley will play in the England's second-tier Championship division as they were relegated from the English Premier League in May.

The 36-year-old previously coached Belgium's Anderlecht.

Kompany moved to Anderlecht in 2019 for a player-manager role before taking the head coach seat in 2020 that he retired from the game.

"Burnley Football Club is a truly historic English side and it is an honour to be appointed first-team manager," Kompany said, adding that he is "excited" about the new challenge.

"I'm looking forward to getting to work with the players and creating a positive, winning team for our fans when we return to Turf Moor," he added.

Kompany was a Manchester City defender in 2008-2019 and captained this team.

He helped Manchester City win four English Premier League titles, two English FA Cups, and four English League Cups.

Kompany amassed 89 international caps for Belgium and led his nation to the 2018 FIFA World Cup semifinals.

He is a World Cup bronze medalist as Belgium beat England 2-0 in the third-place playoff at Russia 2018.