Richard Keys has taken a dig at Burnley boss Vincent Kompany, who he believes takes the Turf Moor job as a “vanity project” unlike Sean Dyche, who bought into the club as well as the town.
In spite of having led Burnley to the Championship title last year and having earned promotion in the process, the Clarets are languishing in the relegation zone after five matches in the top flight.
They have lost four of their matches so far and have accumulated just one point.
Keys has put the blame for Burnley’s poor run of form on their manager, who he feels is taking liberties and considers his job as a vanity project.
He went on to compare Kompany with Dyche as managers of the Turf Moor-based club stressing how Dyche had taken into both the club and the manager, unlike his successor.
“Vincent Kompany is taking liberties”, Keys wrote on his blog.
“I’m afraid it looks as though managing Burnley is a vanity project for him.
“He said afterwards ‘any team that is associated with my name will always play good football’.
“Wrong Vinny.
“You’ve got that totally wrong.
“It’s the other way round – right now your name is associated with Burnley – a fantastic old club that down the years has always known what it is.
“Sean Dyche understood that. He bought into the club and the town.
“You knew he was committed. He was ‘Burnley’ when he was at Turf Moor.
“Kompany gives me the impression that he’s just passing through.
“He’s prepared to sacrifice the club and its fans, who work damned hard for the 90 minutes of distraction in enormously trying circumstances, to raise his reputation and wait for the right one – almost certainly City in his mind.”
Kompany’s side, who narrowly lost 1-0 to Manchester United at the weekend, face Salford City in an EFL Cup third-round match on Tuesday.