After opening the scoring at St Mary’s, Vincent Kompany was filled with joy during his post-match interviews. City’s captain is delighted he has been able to hit the ground running following return from injury.
As reported by the Manchester Evening News, he said: “I would have been done and dusted if I needed every single time to get back in and time to adapt. I have been lucky I can make use of a tremendous amount of experience. Where I am at physically does not matter.
“I know what I have to do and as long as I can organise the people around, I can always get a performance.
“The main thing is self-belief and experience. I cannot say how much it is valuable because if I was 20 years old I would not have done it that way, but I am lucky to have good players surrounding me.”
Kompany wasn’t the only player to speak after Saturday’s win on the South Coast, with Yaya Toure setting his sights on Tottenham and Liverpool, who sit above City in the Premier League table.
Stuart Brennan writes in the Manchester Evening News: “While the Premier League title has gone, the Blues still have their sights on pipping Tottenham into the runners-up spot.
“City are seven points behind Spurs with six games to play, but the north Londoners have a tough run-in, with derby trips to Crystal Palace and West Ham as well as games at Leicester and relegation-fighting Hull, and home games with Arsenal and Manchester United.
““Top four? We want to be top three or top two,” said Toure. “What we are doing now is try to get three points and focus on ourselves.”
There is some insight into the matches to come though, with the Independent already looking ahead to Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final with Arsenal.
Jack Pitt-Brooke writes: “City play Arsenal in an FA Cup semi-final at Wembley on Sunday before hosting Manchester United in the Premier League the following Monday. Win both of those and they will have an FA Cup final to look forward to, as well as a secure grip on a Champions League place.
“Before next season City have a week to define this one. They are playing better than Arsenal at the moment but when the two teams met two weeks ago City twice took the lead but could not put Arsenal away.”
