Chelsea vs Manchester City: 'I'm actually looking forward to Stamford Bridge trip,' says Vincent Kompany

The City captain is confident his team can bounce back from defeat to Arsenal

Manuel Pellegrini was critical of his captain's decision-making (Getty) (Getty)

Vincent Kompany believes Manchester City have the mental resolve to bounce back from their shock defeat to Arsenal and push Chelsea hard for the league title.

The City captain returned to the centre of defence for the first time since 13 December but conceded the first-half penalty that put the home side on the back foot on Sunday.

The clumsy block on Nacho Monreal in the penalty area in the 22nd minute earned the Belgian a rebuke from his manager, Manuel Pellegrini, but Kompany said it did not play on his mind.

Asked if the penalty was harsh, the 28-year-old said: “I’ve said my bit on the pitch and I don’t want to go further. It’s football. We pick ourselves up now. That spirit is there, more than ever, in this team.”

On what the result means for City’s season, Kompany said: “You want to win, always, so any result that’s not a victory you are disappointed. But we’ve been in situations like this before and it won’t affect the way we look at the league.”

City’s next league game is at leaders Chelsea, where defeat would leave Kompany’s side eight points adrift with 15 games to go. “We have always been great in games like this so I’m actually looking forward to it,” Kompany added.