Top 5 Manchester City Players Of The Sheikh Mansour Era

#3 Vincent Kompany

City fans have enjoyed seeing a fitter Kompany this season

The only player to be there since the very beginning, Kompany was one of the first arrivals under Sheikh Mansour and has never thought about leaving. He's destined to go down as one of the Premier League's greatest ever captains, alongside John Terry and Steven Gerrard, and on his day there was no one better with leadership qualities. Recall his towering header which beat Manchester United in one of the biggest Manchester derbies in recent history that was vital to City winning their first league title in 44 years, and the importance of Kompany to this team will be remembered.

The big Belgian was made captain at the start of 2011/2012, after Carlos Tevez's off-field issues, and he was made for the role: he was vocal at the back, commanding in the air, and a calming presence for his fellow teammates. What's also notable is the passion he clearly has for the club - evident yesterday when he celebrated scoring the 2nd goal against Arsenal by running to the corner and roaring in delight. If any player of the Sheikh Mansour years truly feels like a passionate City fan, it's Kompany.

Like De Bruyne, he's unlucky not to find himself higher on this list, even 1st, but his injury record, unfortunately, counts against him. Kompany hasn't made more than 15 league appearances since 2014/2015, and one can only wonder how much better City would have performed in these campaigns if Kompany had led them.