Following the announcement Vincent Kompany is leaving City, tributes have flooded in for the Club's greatest ever skipper...

The Belgian defender leaves City after an incredible 11 years with the Club, during which Manchester City fans have enjoyed unprecedented success.

It’s a long way from his low key move to City in August 2008..

READ: Vincent Kompany leaves City

Kompany arrived relatively unknown in this country having previously played for Anderlecht and then Hamburg.

He signed– a week before Sheikh Mansour’s takeover of the Club - and made his debut against West Ham United just two days later.

Under the guidance of Mark Hughes, he was used principally as a central-midfielder, but when Roberto Mancini joined the club in December 2009, he was switched to centre-half, a position in which he thrived.

Kompany was instrumental in City’s 2011 FA Cup win, our first major trophy in 35 years and the catalyst for a period of dominance in the English game.

He played 50 times that season and established a reputation as one of the finest centre-halves in the Premier League, earning a place in the PFA Team of the Year and winning City’s Player of the Season award.

He was appointed as captain the following season, a position he has held ever since and served with distinction.

Perhaps his most influential moment was his winning goal in the 1-0 over Manchester United in 2012, an emphatic header that sealed all three points and put City in command of a fraught title race that had at one point seen us fall eight points behind our local rivals at the top.

Indeed, five weeks later, a dramatic 3-2 win over QPR sealed the Premier League, our first league title in 44 years. Kompany had been outstanding throughout the season and once again earned a place in the PFA Team of the Year. He was now widely considered to be Europe’s most complete central defender.

City won a league-and-cup double in 2014 under the tutelage of Manuel Pellegrini, scoring a then-English record 156 goals in all competitions. Kompany  won a place in the Team of the Year for the third time and played 37 games in all competitions as we beat Sunderland to lift the League Cup and pipped Liverpool to the title after a dramatic battle for supremacy.

Kompany played in the 2016 League Cup final that saw us beat Liverpool on penalties and scored the second in our 3-0 win over Arsenal in the final last season, a game which also saw him named man of the match after an inspired display.

And just two weeks ago, the 33-year-old produced yet another seismic moment in a City shirt – a 30-yard screamer that settled a tight game at home to Leicester, a result that put us on the brink of a second-consecutive Premier League title.

Kompany played 86 minutes of the final-day win over Brighton that confirmed his fourth Premier League title as a City player and started again in our 6-0 FA Cup final win over Watford this weekend.

Off the field, Kompany is an erudite, multi-layered individual, who earned a global business master’s degree in 2017 and continues to speak eloquently on a range of political and social issues. He formed the charity Tckle4MCR in a bid to help ease Manchester’s homelessness crisis and he hopes to have raised £1m before the end of 2019.

There can be no doubt Vincent Kompany will go down as one of the Premier League’s greatest ever defenders, with his place in the pantheon of City greats very much assured.

THIS IS WHAT IT MEANS : Two of the very best!
THIS IS WHAT IT MEANS : Two of the very best!

Everyone at Manchester City would like to thank Vincent for his impeccable service to this football club. From the day he arrived, he has raised standards and been instrumental in our success and we will forever be indebted to him for his quality on the field and professionalism off it.

In a statement issue on Vincent’s Facebook page, he wrote:

“Dear all, Community Shield Winners! Back 2 back League Cup Winners! Back 2 back Champions of England! FA Cup Winners!

“We’ve just seen the close of an incredible season. My 11th as a Blue. And I cannot believe I’m writing this but ... also my last as a Blue.

“Countless of times have I imagined this day, after all, the end has felt nearby for so many years. It still doesn’t feel real.

“Man City has given me everything. I’ve tried to give back as much as I possibly could.

“How often does someone get the chance to end such an important chapter, representing a club with such great history and tradition, in such a great fashion?

“The time has come for me to go now.

“As overwhelming as it is, I feel nothing but gratefulness. I am grateful to all those who supported me on a special journey, at a very special club.

“I remember the first day, as clear as I see the last..I remember the boundless kindness I received from the people of Manchester.

“I will never forget how all Man City supporters remained loyal to me in good times and especially bad times. Against the odds you have always backed me and inspired me to never give up.

“Sheikh Mansour changed my life and that of all the City fans around the world, for that I am forever grateful. A blue nation has arisen and challenged the established order of things, I find that awesome.

“I cherish the counsel and leadership of a good human being, Khaldoon Al Mubarak. Man City could not be in better hands.

“It’s cliché to say it but it’s also so true: without my teammates I would have never been here today. We fought many battles together. Side by side. In good times and in bad. So to all of you, from the 2008-2009 squad to today’s domestic Treble winners: I owe you guys!

“A special word also to Pep and the backroom staff: you’ve been superb. You’ve followed me through so much hardship. You made me come back stronger every time. Thank you so much.”

Read the full statement here..

Here’s to you, Vincent Kompany. City loves you more than you will know.