#kompany they say

[i-am-q]

Those that were allowed to use the ATP battery in my brain for their “double blind” study up until Jan. 2024, I respect you but respectfully ask for full control of my body again—whatever that means.

Those with access to the slave cameras through the company, keep it up (A plus as they say). The world is behind you.

[lauriel816]

I think we need to call this lady back

[whitehartlane]

bayern fans turning on kane is genuinely hilarious anyway would love it if he could pull a reverse klinsmann and come back to save us from relegation ta h mate x

[thomas-mvller]

Not to be dramatic because i'm in this mia san mia life 5ever, but when steven gerrard left liverpool (and subsequently retired) i stopped watching football for like, a year or more? not as a sign of protest or whatever i just grew uninterested until the world cup brought me back. So i wonder what will happen if thomas does leave bayern this year (yeah i'm still hoping coman retires so they have to keep him or for bayern to change their stupid imbecile dumb ass minds) because, while i love him to pieces, i will not watch the mls for him so like... "cloud retirement era phase two until the world cup" incoming? retirement 5ever? who knows? 🙃

[thommi-tomate]

Man I have supported you since you arrived Kompany but what is this lineup my god, this even borders on disrespect, man if you have Champions League on Tuesday why instead of giving rest to your starters (say Harry and Bambi) and let Thomas play (and can also calm the problem off the field that is burning) you do the opposite by putting more physical burden on your starters.

This really seems like a mockery to me.

[beardedmrbean]

Justice Minister Paul Van Tigchelt (Open VLD) is under fire for comments he made about migrants and their contribution to the Belgian economy.

Featuring as a guest on the podcast 'Talks With Charly', Van Tigchelt was asked about his views on whether it was possible to prevent migrants from entering Belgium, to which he replied: "Of course not. Something like that is impossible, unnecessary and undesirable."

He went on to emphasise the economic role migrants play here. "Who takes care of our care? Who will lay my water pipe? Who cleans my windows at home?"

Podcast host Charly Badibanga then took offence to the insinuation that migrants only contribute to Belgium via low-skilled work, and the Justice Minister quickly sought to nuance his comments. "Sorry for expressing myself incorrectly, but take away migration and our economy will come to a standstill."

He added that figures such as directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah and former football players Marouane Fellaini and Vincent Kompany are a testament to the "wealth" that migration has brought to Belgium.

'Stereotypical'

Van Tigchelt's comments demonstrated a "stereotypical" view of work performed by migrants but was not off the mark regarding the economic impact of reduced migration, says Eva Van Belle, a migration and labour expert at VUB.

"It is difficult to predict the impact a migration policy change would have on the economy, but what we do know is that the rate of migration we have today is good for growth," she told The Brussels Times. "There is a positive fiscal effect too, as migrants contribute more to public finances than what they cost. If we stopped migration, this positive effect would disappear."

The perception that a high proportion of migrants work in low-skilled positions is due to the fact that Belgium lacks any clear strategy to attract high-skilled individuals. In addition, a cinched domestic labour market coupled with discrimination faced by people from migrant backgrounds pushes many of them to unskilled positions. Nevertheless, migrants make up significant portions of professional sectors too, such as IT, healthcare and consulting.

Migration is an enormous topic for political parties ahead of federal elections on 9 June. Van Tigchelt's liberal party Open VLD wants to increase controls at EU borders and make family reunification conditions much more stringent. The party calls for more humane conditions for asylum seekers awaiting a decision on their application despite overseeing a worsening reception crisis since being in government.

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

Meeting of Team Avatars

Krew (Korra), Gaang (Aang), Kompany (Kyoshi), Yircle (Yangchen), and Krowd (Kuruk).

Yangchen: *looking at Krew, Gaang, Kompany* Oh my god.... My prayers didn't work. Kyoshi: What? Yangchen: Especially you. You're the worst offender! Kyoshi: What???? Yangchen: Don't worry about it.

Krew: Omg it's the Gaang! Oh you guys are LEGENDARY! Gaang: This is amazing! So everything has been going well since we left you in charge? Krew: Wouldn't say "well" but we're doing what we can.... Gaang: I get it, totally! Yircle: So theses are the famous "team Avatars?" Should we even be called one? We're more like a spy group. Kompany: That. Is. So. COOL! W-we also do jobs too! Breaking and entering and other sabotage! Gaang: And who are you guys? Kompany: We're the Flying Opera Company (plus old people allies). We're Kyoshi's team. Krew: No WAY! I always thought Kyoshi would just have a mini army of Kyoshi Warriors! Kompany: A what of what now? Krowd: Haha! So you're who takes over after us? Well nice to meet you-wait why does your firebender have Hei-Ran's face. Rangi: God....DAMN it..... Krowd: What was that? Rangi/Kompany: I said stay THE FUCK away from us. Krowd: ????? O_O Huh?

Kyoshi: This is going to be a disaster.

[usermuller]

i’m gonna say it lol i like kompany, he has good ideas but he doesn’t have players who can play like that but i prefer nagelsmann. idk i feel like he was a better fit and he deserved more time and better players.

[probayern]

i've gotta say, i'm liking kompany's football so far. yes it's not 100% yet but this is the kind of sexy dominant attacking football i've been missing

[diemannschaftblr]

@/iMiaSanMia: Julian Nagelsmann on the match plan tomorrow: "It's important that all players know what they have to do. It will be very difficult to be successful tomorrow. It's important that we defend well and that we have a good mix between defense and attack. In some games, that hasn't been the case, and that's our plan for tomorrow. And we'll try to do the same on Sunday in Dortmund."

Under the cut: fans traveling to Italy, choosing Baumann over Nübel, Goretzka being called again, Musiala's role, Kimmich's position, Rudi Völler's future, old coaches being a staple in Serie A, match plans, "pressuring" Pavlović, Bisseck being called to the senior team.

• 3500 German fans are travelling to Milan for tomorrow's game - a 10-year record for an away game

Nagelsmann: It's a huge compliment to the team. They've established a good connection with the fans again. I interpret it that way, and I think both away and home games have their appeal. But if we can rely on 3500 fans for the away game, that helps a lot.

• on his decision to opt for Baumann as #1 over Alex Nübel: Alex handled the decision very professionally, which I found very, very positive. In the end, it was a very close call. It wasn't exactly clear, but we have to make it. Both are having a good season, both are at a good, consistent level. Oli is a bit more consistent at this level. We told both of them that it was for these two games because we also have a top goalkeeper in Marc, and then we'll make a new decision after these games.

• on Leon Goretzka: The decisive factor for outfield players is their performance and current ability, and whether they fit with what we're trying to achieve. Since Vincent Kompany arrived, Leon has also once again become highly valued at Bayern. In the end, performance was the deciding factor. He's a good, experienced Bundesliga player, which is why he's here.

• on Jamal Musiala's role: I'm not giving him any more responsibility than usual. The past few weeks haven't been easy for him either. When you sign a new contract, expectations automatically rise. He's supposed to play how he always plays, he's supposed to be the 'street footballer' he is, but even with Kai (Havertz) and Flo (Wirtz) out, he has no more responsibility than usual.

• on Kimmich's position: He'll stay at right-back. We assessed the Euros and the matches afterwards, and he was the best right-back. Of course, you always consider alternatives, and he's also a player who could move into midfield, but for that, we need a player who can perform the right-back duties better than Josh. He's the best we have and the most reliable in the position.

• on Rudi Völler's potential extension beyond 2026: We have a special relationship. He's an incredibly good and kind person who has no sensitivities and tries to create a good atmosphere for all of us. We really enjoy working with him, but he decides his own future. I would be very happy if he continued, but he's old enough not to need my advice.

• on old coaches in Italy compared to Germany: I wouldn't say that German football is more modern than Italian football. It's not a question of age, but of the connection you have with your players. I'm sure that young coaches will also be given a chance in Serie A in the future.

• on his plans in the double pivot: It's about a good mix of players who have earned a regular place in the squad, who are always there, and who are solid players. We have four midfielders, plus Pavlo, who unfortunately isn't with us at the moment. Angelo is in good form, and Pascal Groß is also doing well after a difficult first half of the season with BVB because he's playing a bit more offensively. My plan is to always have the two best midfielders together on the pitch.

• Nagelsmann faced criticism for his recent comments regarding Aleks Pavlović. Critics said that he was putting pressure on the player, while his illness requires him to fully recover and not rush his comeback

Nagelsmann responds: I'm not forcing him into it. I was referring to the time before his glandular fever. He needs rhythm. I will never force a sick player to become a regular starter for us. Pavlo should take all the time in the world to continue his great path.

• on Yann Bisseck: He's making a good impression. It's important that he gets to know all the players first. I'm giving him time to find his way around the team structure. I can only speak positively about him.

[miasanmuller]

I wasn't gonna say anything on the matter but Thomas subbed in on the last few minutes again? Kompany I'm on your walls

[wiremotherofficial]

i wonder what kompanie-mutter would say about us constantly remaking

she would say, "they will never escape samsara"

[leonsliga]

I don't know how to support a club that openly and transparently treats a players who's given his effing ALL like this. I don't know how. If it had been a normal transfer sure would've sucked still but they're ousting him ans treating him like he's the dirt on their shoe. Wtf

I’m gonna assume this is about Leon, and if it is, we’re in the same boat, dear anon 😵🫂 I know football is just business at the end of the day, and business can be cruel, but this feels like it goes beyond that. Besides, Bayern is supposed to be better than that (at least we like to think so); Bayern is supposed to be a family—one that looks after its members. And yet, here we are. A house divided.

Hell, if it had been a normal transfer and they’d sent him on his merry way, no hard feelings, it might’ve hurt less than this. I know Leon wants to stay at the club, but they’re not making it easy on him. Actually, that’s an understatement; between benching him when he’s fit and leaving him off the squad entirely, it’s pretty clear where he stands right now. I know there’s lots of great options in midfield and Leon needs to fight for his position, but the way Bayern’s handling it all feels a little juvenile. Surely after everything he’s given the club, he deserves more than a constant cold shoulder and exclusion from the squad. I know I’m biased, but it’s hard to read Freund’s, Eberl’s, and Kompany’s comments on him lately, along with all the rumors about how he has “no prospects in Munich” and how they want to “offload him before deadline day”:

I’m glad Jo and Thomas stuck up for him at least:

The whole situation is maddening, honestly. Everyone keeps saying he’s a good player and he’s training well, but it’s hard not to feel like those are empty words at the moment. I’d love to be wrong, but given the way Bayern is freezing him out, it feels like the writing’s on the wall this time. I’d love for Leon to stay and be able to prove himself, but it doesn’t feel like they’re even giving him a chance anymore. I don’t know, maybe it’s just the cynicism talking, but hearing comments from Freund like “he was very successful” make it seem like him leaving is a foregone conclusion. Times like these make it hard to love Bayern, I won’t lie 😂 even if I do still love the club

[kentuckyanarchist]

Songs of 2023

Here we are, a bit late, not quite as late as last year. 2023 was a busy year but somehow an uncomplex one for me—there’ve been worse years, there’ve been better. If the songs spoke to the times, they did so in obscure ways. Nonetheless: 50 favourite songs, 50 fuzzy thoughts, I hope you like them too.

1. Fenne Lily, “Lights Light Up”

Just the right amount of confidence and the right amount of caveats; just the right amount of magic and the right amount of realism.

2. Boygenius, “True Blue”

I love the matter-of-factness of Lucy Dacus’ diction here, putting friendship to words like it’s the most obvious thing in the world: “I can’t hide from you like I hide from myself, duh.”

3. ANOHNI, “Sliver of Ice”

Somehow, amidst the wreckage, it’s the elegance of ANOHNI’s rhymes that get me: view/blue, tonight/light, more/before; if only death was so simple.

4. Caroline Polachek, “Billions”

All I can say here, and it’ll sound silly, is that what’s happening in this song is an attempt to block off the curve from hedonism to cynicism.

5. Ratboys, “Black Earth, WI”

How is it that, with the mushroom cloud above and the ground opening up before them, Ratboys seem to have all the time in the world?

6. Julie Byrne, “Portrait of a Clear Day”

There’s a particular vocal style, smooth and blue like a lake surface, that you find in some English folk music, and in 2023 Julie Byrne was its sharpest, wisest practitioner.

7. Feist, “Hiding Out in the Open”

Homespun, delicate; thrillingly, almost uncomfortably intimate.

8. Slaughter Beach, Dog, “Strange Weather”

One for cataloguing, inventorying, totting up, working out where you stand.

9. Yo La Tengo, “Aselestine”

“Aselestine”’s two songs: the instrumentals so serenely flowing, circling, generative; Georgia Hubley’s vocals so clipped, terse, holding back.

10. Billy Woods & Kenny Segal ft. Samuel T. Herring, “FaceTime”

Could Billy Woods be our foremost imagist? “In a Station of the Metro” but the train’s derailed, bones snapped, screaming kids, twisted metal? I’ve already said too much.

11. Doja Cat, “Agora Hills”

The year’s best pop song, a delicate dedication from (is it fair to say?) unexpected quarters, smut and bravado doing the bare minimum to conceal its softness.

12. Mitski, “Bug Like an Angel”

This song doesn’t have a chorus in the sense of a refrain but has a chorus in the Ancient Greek sense, a set of voices that interrupt in unison, sometimes using dramatic irony.

13. Big Thief, “Born for Loving You”

Sometimes we speak out of the sides of our mouths and sometimes we dissemble; Big Thief could never.

14. The Antlers, “I Was Not There”

The word sweep is a good one for songs by the Antlers: conveying breadth and inexorability, it’s cosy and domestic too; to sweep like they do is to upturn, to wreck, but to renovate, to welcome.

15. Lana Del Rey, “The Grants”

Philip Larkin said poetry was a matter of experiencing a vision then “attempt[ing] to express the whole of which the vision is a part.” For Lana there’s no whole or part, just vision.

16. The Pines of Rome, “I Am a Road”

Gnomic, wry, lamenting, ground-down but still kicking, a bit ornery but if you sit down at its feet you’ll learn something.

17. Bonnie “Prince” Billy, “Willow, Pine and Oak”

Stolid and unsappy, this tripartite scheme isn’t quite right, but it certainly is one way of looking at the world.

18. Lande Hekt, “Pottery Class”

This song says it’s about missing someone, but all those sighs, all those “again”s, all those “buts” make you wonder.

19. James Yorkston, Nina Persson and the Second Hand Orchestra, “A Forestful of Rogues”

“If I say so myself, and I damn well do”—when you start a line like that you can follow it up with almost anything.

20. M83, “Amnesia”

Big as stars and glistening like them; who, in 2023, does it better?

21. CMAT, “Vincent Kompany”

CMAT sometimes seems to want to be “relatable” but then snaps out of it and takes joy in being idiosyncratic, or a bit off, or, basically, really fucking odd.

22. Mannequin Pussy, “I Got Heaven”

Let it be known that in 2023 we snarled sometimes.

23. Shit Present, “More to Lose”

Shit Present, in the best of traditions, use monotone as a weapon: here Iona Cairns drags down what could be a soaring chorus in the most politically astute of ways.

24. Fever Ray, “Kandy”

The word could be skeletal: minimal, of course, but also spooky, schlocky, body-horror, prone to decomposition.

25. Girl Ray, “Hold Tight”

“Hold Tight” says it wants simple sedentary situations, “talking shit on the grass,” “get a Coke and sit on the wall,” all while it bounces and hops non-stop.

26. Charlotte Cornfield, “You and Me”

I’ll admit to preferring the more pensive Charlotte Cornfield, but no one’s surprised she can do affirmative too.

27. Shannon Lay, “From the Morning”

I love Shannon Lay’s confidence: there’s something ever-so-slightly irreverent in this Nick Drake cover, just the slightest smirk.

28. Jeff Rosenstock, “HEALMODE”

The sort of song you find under rotting wooden pallets in derelict parts of the city.

29. The Mountain Goats, “Fresh Tattoo”

The Mountain Goats grow old no worse for wear: still telling meandering parables, still making us feel right at home.

30. Samia, “Charm You”

“As You Are,” Samia’s paean to unconditional familial love, was my favourite song of 2021. “Charm You” works up the same giddiness about a new relationship but introduces a smidge of reticence.

31. Alex Lahey, “The Answer Is Always Yes”

A big year for affirmations in pop (see#4, #26, #46), but (1) this one’s so intricate too, and (2) this one knows what it’s up against too.

32. The Hold Steady, “Grand Junction”

Metronomic, “Grand Junction” declines to shift its swing, which is no problem as it keeps on hitting.

33. Arlo Parks, “Dog Rose”

Arlo Parks writes pop songs with an undercurrent, love songs that threaten to get a bit weird.

34. Holly Humberstone and MUNA, “Into Your Room”

A late entrant: one that toys with overstatement, knows it sounds a bit overblown, but wants to say what it has to say anyway and see how it goes.

35. Young Fathers, “Holy Moly”

This sounds like 2006 to me, a sticky floor and cigarette smoke.

36. Heather Woods Broderick, “Seemed a River”

This song’s weirdly verbose, maybe it’s indecisive? Maybe it’s keeping secrets?

37. Pearla, “Flicker”

Circularity like the seasons, like the sunrise-sunset, like fresh starts, like the worms.

38. Sparklehorse, “The Scull of Lucia”

A grandiose sort of lullaby, making short work of squally seas.

39. Joy Oladokun, “Changes”

I go back and forth on this one: it feels tailored for the Obama playlist, but it still charms me; sometimes it seems too smooth for the ugly world it describes, but there are more egregious sins.

40. Quinnie, “Security Question”

A missed connection that spirals from a whim into a crisis: the entire problem of other minds “at some party I wandered to.”

41. Black Country, New Road, “Laughing Song (Live at Bush Hall)”

On Live at Bush Hall BC,NR continued to be our best worriers, biters of nails, pickers of scabs.

42. Blink-182, “More Than You Know”

If there’s nostalgia here, and there may be, it’s for “Easy Target” or “Stockholm Syndrome,” the careful use of melancholy, the harmonies, Travis Barker drumming like a submachine gun.

43. Vagabon, “Lexicon”

Vagabon’s a rare songwriter who’ll admit to speechlessness, dumbstruckness, stagefright. But some things are unsayable, some thoughts do need to be expressed in deeds.

44. Subsonic Eye, “Machine”

Go on then, make it seem effortless!

45. The Milk Carton Kids, “Star Shine”

I suspect this one’s too hard on itself—there are big lies and little lies, gentle ones and harsh ones, after all.

46. Sufjan Stevens, “Shit Talk”

Somewhere in the ’10s Sufjan became a permanent presence: a waystation, a landmark, a totem, and on Javelin you feel he cautiously started embracing that.

47. Indigo De Souza, “Losing”

It’s one thing to say “less is more”, it’s another to model brevity like this, to just fill two minutes and nineteen seconds with five- or six-word lines that describe all the details of one thought.

48. Fred Again.., “Winnie (Rosslyn Crescent)”

I’m still captivated by Fred Again..’s soundscapes, his windows into London kitchen-sink scenes, and how much he leaves unsaid.

49. Sofia Kourtesis, “Moving Houses”

Fractured images, shards of life, but Sofia Kourtesis seems confident things can be put back together.

50. Oneohtrix Point Never, “Nightmare Paint”

Not an album where you can pick out one song, of course, but if I had to it’d be this pew-pew space opera, brightly lit and smoothly running, letting the unknown in through the airlock.

[underwater-i-will-go]

hate to see all the negative comments saying he doesn't deserve a call up because of his recent bad run for his club. i swear these people haven't watched his performances from the first half of the season for burnley.

burnley's defence is shocking. he always had to do all the work himself, with barely any support from his teammates. yet he did well! then his bad run started which had him lose his place in the starting XI just before international break. absolutely devastating but i also understand kompany here. it's a lot of pressure on him and murić was doing good.

but everyone that constantly criticises him probably also forgets that he used to play two leagues lower until this season, he's only 21 years old and is now burdened with having to try to keep a club from getting relegated. they also act as if he has just been chosen to start for england in the euros over pickford when all that happened is him being called up two days before international break ends for england only to sit on the bench. it's not that deep.

nevertheless i'm still massively proud of him for getting his first call up and i hope there'll be many more of those.

[vertonghen]

Hello! Can I ask you in your belgium nt capacity about youri tielemans? Is he good/do we rate him? He seems sweet and his stats from the last Belgium game were nuts

hii yes please always ask me about the belgians i’m always happy to talk about them! just a warning that this will be 1) biased bc he’s belgian and i love him and 2) very long and disorganized im going into this with no layout in mind

okay so youri is currently coming off his worst season in a while but don’t let that scare you, he’s actually very good in my opinion. also villa getting him for FREE is the best transfer of this entire window, that’s huge!

a little bit of history on him: he went through the anderlecht youth academy which has been called “the best talent factory in belgium” (romelu lukaku, dries mertens, vincent kompany, marouane fellaini are all big name products of the academy)

he made his first team belgian debut in 2016 at 19 years old. he was one of the youngest guys on the squad then and is now one of the last remaining links between the “golden generation” and the new generation. he was called up to the 2018 world cup squad and played a few matches, most notably in the 2-0 win against england in which he performed well. he helped belgium secure their best ever finish in the world cup and after that has been a regular starter for belgium.

okay now a bit about his playing. he initially started as a defensive midfielder because his long range passing is incredible but after a while switched to being an attacking midfielder because of his impressive shot power, scanning and ability to play with both feet. he can play as either an attacking, central or defensive midfielder but for belgium he usually plays as the first two, not sure what position he played primarily in leicester but i assume the same! he doesn’t have a huge number of g/a to his name but that’s not where he shines, when played in his optimal position he’s a very good support player and chance creator.

i think he’s been pretty overlooked both in the prem and in belgium as well. when opposing fans are worried about leicester for example, we talk more about maddison or barnes, but he was their second best player (according to fotmob) even in his worst season so i think that tells you something. ALSO i just remembered, i’m pretty sure leicester won the FA cup one year because of youri’s absolute screamer of a goal, i’d have to double check that though. he’s also only 26 so getting him for free is such a steal (i’m very jealous i want him at spurs we need to start filling our belgian quota again.)

personality wise i adore him. he’s got such a gorgeous smile like i’m obsessed, he’s always smiling in belgium bts videos :,) he’s a very chill guy, 2 kids and a wife, no big scandals to his name from my knowledge, he’ll blend in nicely with the av squad! a bit on the quieter side in bigger groups of people but that might just be because everyone on the belgium squad are loudmouths lmfao he’s a sweetheart though i love him very much.

i was watching this video the other day with him (he’s the one sitting in the middle) in it, it gives a tiny insight on his personality but more importantly it shows you how pretty his smile is 😌

i can’t think of what else to say but tl:dr, yes we rate him, i think under the right coaching he’ll soar! if you want to talk about anything else regarding him let me know, you can message me or send an ask again i’d love to talk about him some more!!!