Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has refused to call time on his playing career at the Etihad Stadium and insists he aims to push his way back into Pep Guardiola’s first-team plans.

The Belgian has had well documented struggles with injuries in recent seasons and has spent the majority of his time watching on from the sidelines since the arrival of Pep Guardiola in the summer of 2016.

In his absence, John Stones and Nicholas Otamendi have both stepped up as the club’s first choice centre-halves, and in January, City completed the club-record signing of Frenchman Alymeric Laporte – who is seen as the natural successor to Kompany at The Etihad.

Despite the £57 million acquisition of the Athletic Bilbao star however, Kompany remains insistent his time in Manchester is not yet done.

“If you’re fit, you have many options and a lot of clubs. If you are not fit, you do not have many opportunities and not many clubs,” Kompany told www.sportwereld.be.

“If I stay fit, I will want to play football at the level of City. And if I’m not fit, I don’t have other options.

“City remain the only solution and this option also gives me the most motivation to continue to lead it. In 18 months you can grab many prizes at such a club.

“I’m really competitive. I do not know if I can muster the same motivation as the circumstances are different. But today it is really not something that I’m looking at.

“In the short and long term, I have so much to look forward to. If today is day one, I’m good for it. That’s how I look at it.”

“I do not take the past. Today is day one and again tomorrow. The prospects are good.”