Bundesliga

2024-07-23T05:45:00Z

Vincent good Kompany for Bayern fans

Vincent Kompany enjoyed interacting with the fans at Bayern Munich's first public training session in his spell as coach.
Vincent Kompany enjoyed interacting with the fans at Bayern Munich's first public training session in his spell as coach.

The new Bayern boss was keen to meet the club's fans at his first public training session, fulfilling endless autograph and selfie requests.

The Belgian was announced as Bayern coach at the end of May, but has just begun working with the record champions' squad after Bayern began pre-season training last week.

Last Saturday's training session at the club's Säbener Straße base was the first time Kompany had led his players through a session open to the public - with 2000 fans there to see their heroes prepare for the new season.

Watch: Bayern Munich return for pre-season

Having trained for over an hour and a half in the Munich summer heat, Kompany made sure he waited to greet the supporters present, remaining for a good 45 minutes to sign autograph after autograph and meet every single selfie request.

Speaking to the media days later ahead of an opening friendly against Rottach-Egern, Kompany showed another reason why he's already becoming a fan favourite - his integration into the city.

"Bavaria is a special region," he said. "There are few regions that have such a culture and are so proud of it. The mountains too. Even a small mountain is difficult to climb. My legs still hurt. Of course, I'm not the only one doing that, but I want to take that extra step, and so does my staff. I'm trying to pick up sayings like 'Habe die Ehre' or 'Servus'. I want to get to know the culture better. In the next four, five, six, seven years, we'll hopefully all be adopted in Bavaria."

He even had time to discuss the club's iconic slogan, 'Mia san Mia' commenting: "I understand it as a feeling. We have to win and celebrate, but we also have to keep going. It's about the club, the next step - how can we get better? We can be proud of the past, but we are successful because we think about the future."

Kompany's first match in charge of Bayern will be the friendly against Rottach-Egern on Wednesday before the club tours South Korea and takes on Harry Kane's former side Tottenham Hotspur at the Seoul World Cup Stadium.

His first competitive match will be a trip to SSV Ulm 1846 in the first round of the DFB Cup on August 16. Whatever happens then, there will still be plenty of delighted fans with a fond souvenir of meeting Kompany.

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