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8th May 2016
04:38pm BST

Clearly Kompany has been - and may still be - an elite defender. And it may well be that he would have found the reserves from somewhere to turn out his best performances in the summer. But in Kompany’s absence, Belgium coach Wilmots has the option to turn to Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld to form a central defensive partnership.Kompany's season ✅ 8 games,⏱704 ❌ 5 weeks ✅ 6 games,⏱418 ❌ 7 weeks ✅ 1 game,⏱9 ❌ 7 weeks ✅ 7 games,⏱496 ❌ 5 weeks ✅ 3 games,⏱189 ❌ no Euros
— Kristof Terreur (@HLNinEngeland) May 8, 2016
@evanfanning I think it's bad. The Spurs CBs gave formed a great partnership — Jody Neville (@TheRealPsycrow) May 7, 2016That’s Vertonghen and Alderweireld, by common consent the two best defenders in the Premier League this season. The outstanding central defensive partnership in the team that has conceded the fewest goals in the division.
Wilmots has preferred to play Vertonghen and Alderweireld in the full-back positions, pairing Kompany with Nic Lombaert's in the centre.
But without his talisman, he may well decide to turn to a tried and tested defensive partnership rather than try and bed in a new partner for Lombaerts in Belgium's warm-up friendlies.
Long had a chance on Sunday to test himself against the two men he will face in one position or another in Bordeaux as Southampton played Spurs at White Hart Lane.
Though Ray Houghton, commentating for Off The Ball, was a little bit critical of Long's display, citing a lack on anticipation and some wasteful finishing, the Spurs defenders were given a difficult time as Southampton won 2-1.
https://twitter.com/KPGambler/status/729317004126081026
https://twitter.com/paulknight20/status/729317327314006016
On TalkSport, Stan Collymore named Long man of the match, though it's probably worth bearing in mind that after the disappointment of Spurs conceding the title after the 2-2 draw with Chelsea on Monday, they may not have been at full tilt.
Long, though, should be able to take some heart if he finds himself up against Vertonghen and Alderweireld in June.
Though if we're looking at form over the past nine months he would probably rather see Kompany in front of him.