After finishing 19th in the Premier League, making 15 signings and spending over £90 million ($114.4m), Vincent Kompany is close to being appointed as Bayern Munich head coach according to reports.
Bayern's managerial hunt has become somewhat comical as they've been linked with numerous coaches and even asked Thomas Tuchel to stay.
In February, the club announced Tuchel would leave the Allianz at the end of the season as the Bavarian giants failed to win the Bundesliga and endured their first trophyless campaign in over a decade.
The Sporting News looks at the latest rumours linking the former Manchester City captain to Bayern.
MORE: Could Southgate be the next Man United manager?
Is Kompany going to become Bayern manager?
While it is yet to be confirmed, Jacob Steinberg of The Guardian reported on May 22 that the Bayern are close to striking a deal and securing Kompany as their new boss.
The Burnley manager clearly was not the first choice as their scattergun search has so far seen rejections from Roger Schmidt, Xabi Alonso, Julian Nagelsmann, Ralf Rangnick, Oliver Glasner and Tuchel himself, as per Christian Falk of Sport Bild.
Steinberg reports that talks are at an "advanced stage" and that Alan Pace, Burnley's owner, has discussed a compensation package with Bayern officials.
The deal could be done by the end of the week.
Vincent Kompany's managerial career
| Year | Team |
|---|---|
| 2019* | Anderlecht |
| 2020-2022 | Anderlecht |
| 2022– | Burnley |
*Player-manager
Why did Tuchel leave Bayern?
Tuchel only replaced Julian Nagelsmann as Bayern manager last March and took the team to a Champions League semifinal before being dumped out by Real Madrid.
That run in Europe led Bayern to ask if he would stay but the 50-year-old confirmed in his final press conference that he would not do a U-turn.
"The decision for me to leave was taken in February so you can imagine that my head, after processing, was 1000% behind that decision," Tuchel said.
"There was the theoretical possibility of a 180-degree turn now and the initiative came from the club."
"The reasons why it did not happen, I don't know, are minimal. Maybe the reasons are not clear, also for the decision in February, but it is what it is," he added.
Why would Bayern hire Kompany?
Putting aside the fact that Burnley were relegated under Kompany this sesaon, he did guide the Clarets to promotion in record-breaking fashion.
In 2022/23, Burnley secured Premier League football with seven Championship games remaining, the earliest promotion in the competition's history.
He then signed a five-year deal, which would be ripped up if Bayern and Burnley agree to terms of compensation.
Kompany's promotion campaign saw them score 87 goals in 46 games and manage to keep 17 clean sheets.
Before the former Belgium centre-back returned to England, he managed at Anderlecht, his boyhood club.
After a brief initial stint as player-coach in 2019/20, he reached the semi-finals of the Belgian Cup the following season but Genk eliminated his side. The league campaign ended with Anderlecht qualifying for the playoffs and securing a spot in the UEFA Europa Conference League.
They then went on another cup run in 2020/21, reaching the final but losing on penalties to Gent. Anderlecht finished third in the First Division behind Union Saint-Gilloise and Club Brugge.
Despite a chastening first season as a Premier League boss, Kompany's standing within the game remains high and his status as a coaching disciple of Pep Guardiola might have worked in his favour when it comes to impressing Bayern sporting directors Max Eberl and Christoph Freund.
Kompany played under Guardiola in the Catalan's first three seasons at Manchester City, which followed his three Bundesliga titles in as many years at Bayern. It seems the Bayern hierarchy are taking a punt on Kompany as a manager with a clearly defined style who was able to play dominant football at Burnley when managing one of the strongest squads in the Championship.
Nevertheless, their limp relegation this term makes Kompany's apparent ascent to one of the most desirable jobs in European football a truly jaw-dropping development.