VINCENT KOMPANY has emerged as a leading contender to become Tottenham’s new boss.
The Belgian looks to be leading Burnley back to the Premier League at the first attempt but SunSport understands he would be interested in the Spurs job.
Manchester City icon Kompany’s work in his debut season at Turf Moor, where he plays an exciting brand of football, has impressed Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy.
Spurs are putting together a shortlist after Antonio Conte finally left the club on Sunday.
Julian Nagelsmann, Mauricio Pochettino, Luis Enrique, Marco Silva and Thomas Frank are all in the running.
Kompany’s Championship leaders Burnley are 16 points clear of third spot ahead of hosting Sunderland tonight and can confirm automatic promotion by next weekend.
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Yet he knows he will not be able to spend big to keep the Clarets in the top flight.
Kompany, who cut his teeth with two years as Anderlecht boss, rebuilt the squad last summer after losing top stars like Nick Pope, Ben Mee, James Tarkowski and Dwight McNeil.
Last May’s relegation saw Burnley owners ALK Capital hit with an early repayment of £65million on a loan taken to help fund their 2020 takeover.
At 36, Kompany is just a year older than Nagelsmann who was axed by Bayern Munich last week.
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And City boss Pep Guardiola claims it is “written in the stars” that Kompany will one day be manager at the Etihad.
The Clarets were beaten 6-0 at City in the FA Cup quarter-finals this month — and Kompany reckons that is just what his players needed.
He said: “The timing of it was impeccable.
“By that, I mean you could have seen the start of international weeks as like a mini-break where you rest with maybe one foot on the beach.
“But it gives you a shock effect. The result was dramatic but the game was enough to show we’re not passengers here — that’s the standard, that’s the level.”
Cristian Stellini, who was Conte’s No 2, takes charge as interim Spurs coach for the first time at Everton on Monday.
He said: “I’m sad, when you change manager in the middle of the season everyone feels responsible.
“My relationship with Antonio is the same because we are friends.
“I feel honoured to be trusted with the team to the end of the season. The players and everyone have to do more.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
