‘A call from Kompany’: Liverpool target admits Burnley wanted him, now costs £35m-plus

Not everyone at Turf Moor has been as fortunate as Vincent Kompany, who managed to bounce back from Burnley’s calamitous 2023–24 campaign and go on to play for Bayern Munich in only a few short weeks.

Upon their return to the Premier League, the Championship winners of the past invested more than £90 million in new players. How many can one actually count as successful?

Perhaps Sander Berge. Wilson Odobert and Luca Koleosho most likely. Maybe Dara O’Shea as well.

Zeki Amdouni, James Trafford, Aaron Ramsey, and Mike Tresor, in particular, are in a much worse situation this summer than they were last, unable to live up to their high price tags for a Burnley team that was only saved from an even worse outcome by an even more dysfunctional Sheffield United team.

Therefore, Johan Bakayoko won’t be overly upset about missing out on relocating to Lancashire. Indeed, it could seem as though the Belgian barnstormer has escaped a barrage of projectiles.

Burnley lost out on Johan Bakayoko, a PSV standout.

In an interview with Het Belang van Limburg, Bakayoko talked about his conversations with fellow countryman Vincent Kompany from about a year ago.

Instead, Bakayoko remained at PSV Eindhoven, where he immediately became the star of an incredible Eredivisie-winning season while Burnley immediately fell back into the second division.

“Last year, I got a call from Kompany,” the stylish 21-year-old claims. “Then he gave an explanation of his vision. That was pleasant. It was a worthwhile discussion.

“But that was the summer before.”

For this summer, rumors have Bakayoko linked to teams like Manchester United and Liverpool. This is the culmination of a season in which the wideman, like to Robben, scored 14 goals and assisted 14 more while wearing PSV uniforms.

Any team looking to get Bakayoko is also have to pay at least double the £17 million that Burnley reportedly made last August, according to Marcel Brands, the director of football for the Dutch champions (Daily Mail).

“That depends on whether or not he moves forward. The other question is, which club will show up? Former Everton manager Brands says to ESPN.

“We recently discussed enormous clubs. Will you refuse such a club when it approaches? We’re not going to sell Bakayoko for 35 million euros anymore.

An awful campaign for Vincent Kompany

Not just Bakayoko, a highly regarded attacker, had conversations with Kompany but ultimately chose to play football elsewhere. The former Ajax player Mohamed Daramy signed a contract with Ligue 1 team Reims for a possible £15 million.

Burnley and Reims were involved.Finally, I decided on Reims,” Daramy told Tipsbladet a few months ago. “To find out what ideas Will Still and Vincent Kompany had for me and where I saw myself, I chatted with each of them.

“Kompany was a really nice guy.” If I claimed I wasn’t considering moving there, I would be lying. Ultimately, though, I trusted my instincts. I deliberated before deciding on what I felt would be best for me.

“Kompany is an excellent instructor, and he showed me a lot of empathy.” It was a tough decision for me, so he also gave me some advice on making decisions.