'Sir Alex Ferguson was there to watch me' - Vincent Kompany reveals Man Utd scouted him during early playing days but is 'glad' he wound up signing for Man City instead

As Kompany returned to Celtic Park on Wednesday as Bayern Munich's manager for the first leg of their Champions League round of 16 play-off fixture, he recalled playing for the first time in Europe for Anderlecht in 2003. In a group stage match against Celtic in Glasgow, the Belgian was in action when legendary United boss Ferguson visited the stadium to watch him play. Celtic won the game 3-1, while the defender's performance was not up to the mark as Ferguson decided to look elsewhere for a new central defender. Later in his career, Kompany ended up joining the Red Devils' rivals Manchester City.

Speaking to reporters, the Bayern boss said: "It's not a nostalgic return. I'm coming back as a coach, not a player. I don't want to bring in too much nostalgia, but it was great. I remember Sir Alex Ferguson was there to watch me. If I'd played well, maybe he would've made an offer for me.

"But I'm glad I ended up at the blue side of Manchester. As a player, you look forward to moments like this, no matter how tough they are. Celtic have a great home record, but that just increases our appetite for games like this."

Kompany spent the first three seasons of his professional career at Anderlecht after which he briefly joined Hamburg in 2006 before signing for the Cityzens in 2008. The defender went on to become a club legend at Etihad Stadium and won multiple trophies with the English giants.

After facing Celtic in midweek, the Bavarian side will be back in action in the Bundesliga on Saturday as they take on reigning champions Bayer Leverkusen.