Kompany leaves City: How do they replace him?

After the jubilation and delight of winning The FA Cup in the most emphatic of circumstances on Saturday with a 6-0 win over Watford, Manchester City fans were given a heartbreaking piece of news.

Club captain and longest serving player Vincent Kompany announced that he will be ending his 11 year stay in Manchester upon the expiry of his contract this summer, ending a sensational spell in the north west.

The 33 year-old arrived at the Etihad Stadium back in 2008 in the pre-Sheikh Mansour era as an unknown holding midfield, costing a rather modest £5m from Hamburg.

He leaves as a club legend and one of the greatest centre-halves the Premier League has ever seen, playing starring roles in City's 4 title wins alongside picking up 2x FA Cups and 4x League Cups.

Kompay's heroics on the pitch speak for themself and it's why the City fans have endeared to him so much, but what they're going to really miss is his leadership and impact in the dressing room and club as a whole.

As far as captains go you're going to struggle to find one as influential and passionate as Kompany. He lives and breathes Manchester City & Pep Guardiola has a massive job on his hands in attempting to replace one of the clubs greatest ever players.

City's record in the transfer market has been very impressive under the Spaniard but filling the Kompany filled void in his squad certainly looks like the toughest test so far and it could well prove to be a very expensive one.

We've taken a look at some of the names linked with a move to the Etihad and what they could bring to Guardiola's side. But who do you think they should sign? Let us know @FootyAccums!

Currently available at odds of 2/1 with BetVictor, last summers World Cup hero is one of the favourites to make the move to the Etihad Stadium. The 26 year-old has enjoyed a rapid rise to prominence over the last few seasons and he now looks like he's ready to make the jump to that elite level.

Since joining Leicester City for around £17m from relegated Hull City back in 2017 he's gone from strength-to-strength. The Foxes have a young, vibrant side which is excelling at the moment and Maguire plays a large part in that from the centre of defence.

Maguire is an absolute unit of a defender, intimidating in stature and able to dominate his opponents physically, but what will really make him appeal to Pep Guardiola and Manchester City is his technical ability.

This is sometimes overlooked when it comes to slab head, but this guy can really play. Maguire's range of passing is superb and his rampaging runs from centre-back have become something of a trademark.

Pep Guardiola wants his defenders to be comfortable in any situation and Maguire has proven during this during his three full seasons in the top flight. He can defend, carry the ball and he's also a massive threat from set pieces.

City are one of the smaller sides in the Premier League when it comes to height so adding Maguire to their ranks will certainly bolster their aerial ability. He netted 3 times for Leicester last season and of course that famous one against Sweden at the World Cup for the Three Lions.

Some may see this as something of a slight gamble by City but Maguire has all the attributes to be a success in Manchester and it's a move we can see materialising. The fans are losing a cult hero in Kompany but we could see them soon warming to Maguire like we all did during the World Cup.

Coming in at 8/1 with SkyBet, Matthijs de Ligt looks like a bit of an outside shout for a move to Manchester but we all know how quickly things can change in the transfer market.

The Ajax youngster is arguably the most in-demand player this summer, with a host of elite clubs from around the continent credited with an interest in him.

At the of 19, the Dutch international already has 15 caps for his country and a massive 134 senior career appearances which is hugely impressive. But what makes it all the more extraordinary is the fact he's earned the right to skipper his team.

Captaining a club like Ajax at 19 is unbelievable and it's the way he's done it which is catching everyones attention. He's led them to a domestic double this season along with the semi-finals of the Champions League, ending up just seconds away from a final showdown with Liverpool in Madrid on 1st June.

His performances on their run to the semis were heroic, he led his side by example with some fantastic defending along with scoring against both Juventus and Tottenham. Like Maguire, he's a real all round defender but what makes him more appealing than the England man is his age.

He's delivering consistency well beyond his tender years and whoever ends up signing him this summer could potentially have a world class player on their books for the next 15 years.

He's expected to cost over £70m so he isn't cheap, but if City could pull this one off they could well mould into their next Vincent Kompany. But if they're to get him they need to move fast, with Barcelona odds-on favourites to secure his signature. Getting de Ligt to the Etihad would be a real statement of intent and he'd flourish under Pep.

Best priced at 8/1 with BetVictor, this is move that looks unlikely but if it was to go through it would be one of the biggest transfers of the summer window.

Napoli centre half Kalidou Kouliably has emerged as one of Europe's standout defenders over the last couple of seasons and it's led to a number of clubs being linked with a move for him.

But with the Serie A outfit not in any need to sell, it's going to cost a mammoth fee to get him to depart the Stadio San Paolo, with his release clause believed to be around the £100m mark.

Should City go for him that would blow both their transfer record (Riyad Mahrez £60m, 2018) and the Premier League record (Paul Pogba £89m, 2016) out the water, so it would be a massive statement of intent from Guardiola.

At the age of 27, Koulibaly is right at the peak of his powers so they'd be buying someone who could slot right into the team instantly and make a big impact. Like Maguire & de Ligt, he's an extremely well rounded defender who can play, stop and score goals.

He looks like he's built for the Premier League and his technical attributes would see him slot nicely into City's fluid 4-3-3. He's not quite the vocal leader that de Ligt is but his performances in Serie A and Europe for Napoli set an example to others.

He will cost an obscene amount of money and he's also strongly linked with neighbours Manchester United, who're set to go through a major re-building job this summer. So it's going to be interesting to see if anyone is willing to cough up that massive release clause or get involved in a bidding war.

There's a long list of potential candidates to come in and try fill the large Kompany shaped hole at Manchester City, with another one being Real Madrid man Raphael Varane. Available at 14/1 with MoPlay, he's another outside shout at the moment but there has been rumours surrounding his future at the Bernabeu over the last few months.

Real Madrid have endured one of their worst ever seasons and the World Cup winner has reportedly said he's ready for a new challenge. He won't be short on offers and after seeing how his compatriot Aymeric Laporte has adapted from the demands of Premier League after moving from La Liga, Pep could be tempted to enquire about the 26 year-olds availability.

Another French international in La Liga has also been strongly linked with an exit, in Samuel Umtiti. The Barcelona man has been a big success at the Camp Nou since arriving from Lyon but the clubs pursuit of Matthijs de Ligt needs funding, so a potential departure for the 25 year-old has been earmarked.

Comfortable playing in the heart of defence or left back, Umtiti is a versatile, dominant defender who we could really see excelling in the Premier League. Arsenal have also been credited with an interest in him but you'd expect a move to City to be too much for him to turn down should he be available, another interesting prospect.