Vincent Kompany testimonial: Mario Balotelli confirmed for match at Etihad Stadium

Mario Balotelli has been confirmed for Vincent Kompany’s Manchester City testimonial match on September 11.

The 29-year-old will wear the sky blue jersey again after he played for the club between 2010 and 2013, making 80 appearances and scoring 30 goals.

Balotelli will make up part of the Manchester City Legends side, which will face off against a Premier League all-stars XI at the Etihad Stadium.

Pep Guardiola is set to manage the City team, while Belgium boss Roberto Martinez will coach the Premier League all-stars.

Several of Kompany's former City team-mates have already been confirmed for the match, including Joe Hart, Joleon Lescott, Micah Richards, Pablo Zabaleta, Wayne Bridge, Gareth Barry, Nigel de Jong, Samir Nasri, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Stephen Ireland and Craig Bellamy.

In addition, current City stars Sergio Aguero and David Silva will also make up part of the City Legends team.

Balotelli recently signed with hometown club Brescia as a free agent, returning to Italy after a productive spell in France with Nice and Marseille.

The striker will look to get back in the Italy national team picture, having most recently played for the Azzurri in September 2018.

He is still part of City folklore, having laid on the assist to Aguero for the Argentine's famous title-winning goal in 2012.

And Balotelli will now return to the Etihad to honour long-time captain Kompany, who departed City at the end of last season to take on a player-coach role with Anderlecht in his native Belgium.

Kompany has gotten off to a difficult start with his new side, as Anderlecht have drawn two and lost two of their first four league games this season.

But the centre-back will be honoured next month after an 11-year career at City that saw him win four Premier League titles, two FA Cups, four League Cups and two Community Shields.

Proceeds from the match will go to Tackle4MCR – an initiative Kompany set up with the Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, to address rough sleeping and homelessness in the city.