Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany has revealed how he dealt with defending against Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. during his 10-year stint at the Etihad Stadium, having come through battles with modern-day striking greats relatively unscathed in that time. In extracts from a new book - FOOTBALL 2.0 - Kompany, 32, lifts the lid on the art of defending and discusses what it is like to come up against the likes of Messi and Ibrahimovic. The City star revealed he will study his upcoming opponents by watching videos of them to ensure he is fully prepared, but also now relies on his vast experience to adapt and make sound in-game decisions. He said: 'The game is evolving massively on the video-analysis side, so we've got virtually everything at our disposal. I'll watch the 15-minute clip about the opposition and I'll focus on what those players are used to doing.'You already know, for example, that Peter Crouch likes going back post so he can flick it back for a smaller striker who comes in and creates the danger. He used to do that with Jermain Defoe. I'm not saying you can always handle it but, if you know it, you have an advantage.' However, preparing to handle Messi is an entirely different proposition to Crouch. Kompany came up against the Argentinian forward on two occasions when City and Barcelona clashed in the Champions League group stage back in 2016.During City's 3-1 win at the Etihad, Kompany found himself in an unenvious position of being the only person between Messi and goalkeeper Joe Hart.The Barcelona forward was bearing down on him after leaving Fernandinho in his wake, but the 32-year-old kept his composure and instead of retreating he pressed and took the ball cleanly away from Messi.'This is the hardest situation. He's coming at full pace against you. You're stuck and you know if he passes you, he's gone,' Kompany said of that particular encounter. 'But that's a good intervention. In that situation, you take it if you need to. Although, it is one thing difficult to teach. You stick your leg out at the right time and I've been doing it since I was a kid.'I love defending and I'm passionate about it. I hate getting beat one-on-one, even in training. Most of my injuries in training were because of that, because I cannot get beaten.'Having mastered the art of defending over his 15-year career, Kompany is appropriately placed to dish out tips to any aspiring youngsters. Looking back at a clip from a game against Chelsea, Kompany highlights how important positioning is after Diego Costa had dragged him out wide. The City man looked to have been beaten but managed to use his strength to out-muscle the Spanish striker and dispossess him. Kompany said: 'If you go out of position, you need to take something. It is actually a good move from Costa but on that occasion I was stronger. We made something look good that was actually a horrendous situation.'Had Ibrahimovic been in place of Costa at that moment, K