adminLONDON. — Yata Toure is prepared to sit tight at Manchester City because he stands to earn £11 million from seeing out the final season on his contract.
Pep Guardiola underlined that Toure is not part of his plans by leaving the 33-year-old Ivory Coast international out of his squad that travelled for last night’s Champions League play-off first leg against Steaua Bucharest.
It followed his absence from the squad for Saturday’s Premier League opener against Sunderland but, despite the double snub, Toure is determined not to be forced out before the end of the August transfer window.
He will wait until the January window or even the end of the season when he can leave on a free transfer.
And that is a bizarre turnaround from two years ago when Toure’s agent Dmitri Seluk claimed his client wanted to quit when he was not given a cake for his 31st birthday. Now he is happy to stay despite being frozen out — although he is well aware that no European club will match his £225 000-a-week wages.
Seluk said: “Yaya has not been included against Sunderland or Bucharest but that’s OK. He is fit to play right now. This is a very good process for Yaya. It will allow him to prove in training and in matches that he is still a wonderful player. But there is no talk of a transfer. Yaya will stay and fight.
“Guardiola has to learn all about the players he has available. The performance against Sunderland was far from perfect. Pep is the best manager in the world and I just hope he gives Yaya the chance to prove he is still good enough for City.”
Guardiola, who has bought Ilkay Gundogan as Toure’s replacement, explained his decision to axe Toure by suggesting he has not got the “intensity” he demands from his players. — The Daily Express.
Online Reporter