Yaya Toure is one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history after winning three titles with Manchester City but rarely gets the respect he undoubtedly deserves
Yaya Toure is a Manchester City legend (Image: Getty Images)
Vincent Kompany, Sergio Aguero and David Silva all have statues outside of the Etihad.
But Yaya Toure doesn’t.
That’s a travesty, and sums up how under appreciated the great Ivorian is. Toure is undoubtedly one of the greatest midfielders in Premier League history – a man that deserves to be regarded in the same breath as the likes of Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes and Kevin De Bruyne – and played a priceless role in the rise of Manchester City.
Toure celebrates his 40th birthday on Saturday and has already achieved plenty in his life, but there is much more to come from this blossoming coach. Here is his story so far.
Arsenal collapse
Toure started his professional career with Belgian minnows Beveren, but it was clear he was destined for greater things. In 2003, Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger – the summer before his team’s unbeaten Premier League campaign – handed Toure a trial.
Toure’s older brother Kolo was already a regular at Highbury and it was hoped the brothers would become team-mates. Despite missing a sitter in a pre-season friendly against Barnet, Yaya did enough to impress Wenger and was offered a contract.
Toure once had a trial with Arsenal ( Image: Getty Images)
Yet Toure’s delay in gaining a work permit allowed Ukrainian club Metalurh Donetsk to swoop in. The rest, as they say, is history.
Wenger explained in 2014: “It would be up at the top [of my list of regrets, not signing Toure]. But let’s not forget that Yaya Toure had an agreement with us – and it’s not because we did not want to sign him that he went to Ukraine.
“We needed to wait for his passport in Belgium. We have made mistakes but he is not a mistake, it’s just the fact that he preferred to go to Metalurh Donetsk. He could go there without any passport.”
Treble winner
The Ivorian won the Champions League with Barcelona in 2009 ( Image: Getty Images)
After his Arsenal disappointment, Toure established himself as one of the most exciting young midfielders in Europe. Spells with Olympiacos and Monaco followed before Barcelona manager Frank Rijkaard signed him in the summer of 2007.
Pep Guardiola succeeded Rijkaard a year later and transformed Toure into a defensive midfielder. Guardiola even played him at centre-back in the 2009 Champions League final against Manchester United, which Barcelona won 2-0 thanks to a Lionel Messi header.
Toure would’ve been forgiven for feeling frustrated. With the creative talents of Xavi and Andres Iniesta at Guardiola’s disposal, it was always going to be hard for Toure to play in a more advanced position at Barcelona. It did demonstrate his versatility, however.
Toure played more than 100 games for Barcelona thanks to his willingness to drop back into defence. During a three-year spell at Camp Nou, he won the Champions League, Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana, European Super Cup, Club World Cup and two LaLiga titles.
Yet there was a feeling Toure had more to give.
City superstar
Toure scored the winning goal in the 2011 FA Cup final ( Image: Getty Images)
City manager Roberto Mancini agreed with that notion and paid £24m to bring him to the Etihad in the summer of 2010. The transfer raised eyebrows, as he was pocketing a reported £200,000-a-week. That seemed a lot for a perceived defensive midfielder.
Yet City’s ambition matched Toure’s. That, coupled with Kolo’s transfer from Arsenal to City a year earlier, made it the perfect transfer. Yaya said on arriving: “City have a great squad and some great players. We can win the title, we can make this club huge.”
City went on to win the FA Cup in 2011 and the Premier League title a year later. Toure played a crucial role in both of those triumphs – scoring the winner in the cup final against Stoke and a brace against Newcastle in the penultimate game of title-winning season.
Both of those games are fondly remembered by City fans and proved why Mancini signed Toure. He was brought in as a box-to-box powerhouse in midfield, not just to sit in front of the back four. The makeshift centre-back was now Mancini’s matchwinner.
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The 2013-14 campaign under Manuel Pellegrini was Toure’s finest. He scored 24 goals in all competitions to fire City to the glory in the Premier League and League Cup.
Toure’s equaliser against Sunderland in the League Cup final was truly special. With City heading towards a famous upset, the Ivorian curled a first-time effort into the top corner from around 30 yards out. It was an astonishing goal fuelled by talismanic confidence.
Toure remained an important player for City over the next few years, racking up more than 300 appearances for the club, but the arrival of Guardiola in the summer of 2016 marked the beginning of the end. Two years later, his time at the Etihad was up.
Toure experienced brief spells with Olympiacos and Chinese side Qingdao Huanghai before hanging up his boots in 2020. Although it was a quiet end to a glittering career, few City fans will ever forget him at his brilliant best. Simply magnificent.
Africa’s champion
Toure led Ivory Coast to victory in the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations final ( Image: Getty Images)
While Toure achieved everything at club level, international success didn’t come to him easily. His first chance to win the Africa Cup of Nations came in 2006, when Ivory Coast faced Egypt in the final. The latter side won 4-2 on penalties after a goalless draw.
Ivory Coast reached the final again six years later, a game everyone expected them to win against an unfancied Zambia side. Yet the tie finished goalless and went to penalties again, with Zambia winning 8-7 in a dramatic, lengthy shootout in Gabon.
Those losses must have been hard for Toure to take. He didn’t take a penalty in either game after being substituted, leaving him powerless in defeat.
Yet Toure finally became an African champion by beating Ghana in 2015’s final, held in Equatorial Guinea. Once again, the game finished goalless and went to penalties. But this time, their talisman stayed on the pitch and scored in the 8-7 shootout triumph.
Toure, as captain, told reporters: “I cannot express my happiness. When you win a title with your club it is amazing but, with the country, it is unbelievable.
“I have been dreaming of this moment throughout my eight years in the national team. I have been waiting for this moment. We failed twice in 2006 and 2012. I’m very delighted and I want to thank all who have inspired and motivated us.”
What’s next?
Toure wants to become a successful manager ( Image: Getty Images)
Toure’s ambition is clear: to become a manager. He’s already been the assistant manager at Ukrainian side Olimpik Donetsk and Russian outfit Akhmat Grozny, and he spent time learning from Jurgen Klopp during a Liverpool pre-season tour two years ago.
Toure is currently an academy coach at Tottenham and hopes to become a manager in the near future. Former Crystal Palace boss Patrick Vieira, who played with Toure at the Etihad, believes the emerging coach has all the qualities needed to become a manager.
“I think he’s someone who can make the step into management easily,” said Vieira in February. “I really like the path he’s decided to take with Spurs. I follow him, I’ve spoken to him and I know he’s enjoying himself very much at Spurs.
“That was his first step and he’s going to grow. When you have so much to give to the game, it’s important for these players to get some experience, and this is what Yaya is doing at Tottenham. He doesn’t need my advice.
“He’s smart enough to get to where he wants to go. He’s someone that doesn’t make so much noise, but he’s there developing and growing as a manager to be.
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“And he will get there because he’s an ambitious person that commands respect – the way that he played and how he conducted himself on and off the field.”
Vieira was speaking at a Football Writers Association (FWA) event to honour Toure, which says everything you need to know about the iconic midfielder. It’s only a matter of time before Toure becomes a manager and writes another chapter in his remarkable story.
Come on City, build the man a statue.
