The bigger the game the better for fit-again Vincent Kompany

Vincent Kompany, a player who has endured an estimated 34 injury lay-offs in his eight years as a Manchester City player, left the Etihad Stadium on Sunday evening with a broad grin on his face, an indication of his improving physical condition rather than the near-hour grilling he and his team mates had endured following a 1-1 draw with Southampton.

That disappointing performance from Pep Guardiola’s team not only extended their current winless run to five games but also earned the playing staff 50-plus minutes locked in the dressing room as their manager aired his feelings.

But for Kompany, 30, the game may prove to have had far greater significance representing, as it did, his first Premier League start since April and, he and his club can only hope, an end to a wretched run of injuries which has seen him suffer 30 of those 34 absences since 2012.