Touré began his playing career at Ivorian clubASEC Mimosas, where he made his debut at age 18. His performances attracted attention from Europe. He had stints withBeveren,Metalurh Donetsk,Olympiacos andMonaco before moving to Barcelona in 2007. He played over 100 matches for the club and was part of the historic Barcelona team that won six trophies in a calendar year, in 2009. In 2010, Touré moved to Premier League clubManchester City, where he scored a number of key goals, most notably the only goals in the 2011FA Cup semi-final andfinal. He also helped City earn their firstleague title in 44 years.
Touré earned 100caps for the Ivory Coast from 2004 to 2015, representing the nation at the2006,2010 and2014 FIFA World Cup tournaments. He also represented them in sixAfrica Cup of Nations in2006,2008,2010,2012,2013 and2015, helping them finish runner-up in 2006 and 2012, whilecaptaining them to victory in 2015. He is the younger brother of fellow former footballerKolo Touré who was his teammate at Manchester City and the national team.
Club career
Early career
Touré was born inBouaké.[9] He joined theASEC Mimosas youth academy in 1996 on the recommendation of his long-time mentor Patrick van Reijendam. A prominent figure in the ASEC academy wasJean-Marc Guillou. In 2001, Guillou invested heavily in a Belgian club,Beveren, with the aim of using the team to showcase Ivorian players in a European league.[10] Touré moved to Beveren in 2001, one of many ASEC players to do so in this period. By 2003, he was one of 14 Ivorians in the Beveren squad.[citation needed]
In the summer of 2003, Touré had a trial withArsenal.[11] He started a pre-seasonfriendly againstBarnet on 19 July which finished a 0–0 draw. TheBBC Sport website said that Touré "blotted his copy book by missing Arsenal's clearest chance of the game, heading a cross fromQuincy Owusu-Abeyie wide."[12] Wenger was still keen to sign the then 20-year-old but Touré had difficulties in receiving awork permit.[13] Ultimately, Touré grew impatient and opted to sign for Ukrainian clubMetalurh Donetsk in December 2003, where he spent one and a half years.[14][15]
Olympiacos and Monaco
Touré joinedOlympiacos in 2005. He was described as "the newPatrick Vieira" by his older brother. Olympiacos won the double that season, and Touré was one of their key players. His performances in Greece were impressive and attracted interest from many clubs.[16]
Touré signed for FrenchLigue 1 clubMonaco in August 2006.[17] However, he had a difficult relationship with the incumbent manager,László Bölöni, with Touré claiming Bölöni refused to play him in his preferred midfield position.[18] Bölöni was soon sacked with Monaco languishing in the second-last position in the league table.[19]
Laurent Banide replaced Bölöni and Touré subsequently became an influential player in the second half of the season, scoring five times to help haul the club out of relegation difficulties.[20] He had established himself as a key midfielder, and with interest from around Europe he decided to joinBarcelona in the summer of 2007.[21]
During the early stages of the2008–09 season, newly appointed managerPep Guardiola favouredSergio Busquets in the defensive role of Barcelona's midfield trio. In the2009 Champions League final, Touré played atcentre-back due to injuries and suspensions of first-choice defenders, despite having only played there twice before for Barcelona.[26] In late June 2010, Barcelona confirmed that Touré would be allowed to leave the club in the summer window.[27]
Manchester City
2010–11: Debut season and FA Cup
On 2 July 2010, Touré signed a five-year contract withPremier League clubManchester City for a fee of around £24 million.[28] He made his Premier League debut on 14 August in a 0–0 away draw againstTottenham Hotspur.[29] A week later, Touré impressed in the 3–0 home win overLiverpool, forming a part of a three-man midfield withGareth Barry andNigel de Jong.[30] On 19 September, Touré scored his first City goal, againstWigan Athletic.[31] The goal was scored in the 70th minute and Touré was assisted byCarlos Tevez, who also scored in that match.[32] Touré had been seen to take up a more attacking position underRoberto Mancini and revelled in the position. In December, he scored a brilliant left-footed drive againstWest Ham United and soon scored a second, which was later credited as an own goal because the ball rebounded off the post onto goalkeeperRobert Green's back and bounced in.[33]
In January 2011, Touré scored his third goal againstWolverhampton Wanderers in a delightful counter-attack move, with Touré making up 90 yards to latch onto the ball and fire it past the goalkeeper, with Manchester City eventually winning 4–3.[34] Touré's fifth goal for City came on 25 February in aUEFA Europa League match againstAris. The goal was a deflected strike to make the score 3–0 to Manchester City. On 16 April 2011, Touré scored the only goal of the game in a Man of the Match performance againstManchester United in the FA Cup semi-final.[35] Touré continued hisWembley success by scoring the only goal in his team's 1–0 win overStoke City in the2011 FA Cup final,[36] ending Manchester City's 35-year wait for a major trophy,[37] and writing himself into Manchester City folklore in the process.[38]
2011–12: First Premier League title
The2011–12 season began strongly as Manchester City led the table for the majority of the season, with Touré playing a vital part in midfield. On 21 December 2011, in a 3–0 home win over Stoke City, Touré set new Premier League records for most passes attempted (168) and most completed (157) in a single match.[39][40] His efforts and performances were rewarded as he was crownedAfrican Footballer of the Year for 2011, an impressive achievement for a midfielder, since the previous 12 awards have gone to African forwards.[7]
As the 2011–12 came to a close, Manchester City lost ground to Manchester United in the Premier League title race. After a defeat by Arsenal on 8 April 2012,[41] an eight-point deficit had been established between City and leaders United, with most writing off City's chances of winning the league with six matches remaining. However, City defeatedWest Bromwich Albion 4–0,Norwich City 6–1, and Wolverhampton Wanderers 2–0 with United slipping-up, meaning the deficit at the top was now only three points with only three matches to play. A victory at home to Manchester United would move City to top on goal difference. The match was keenly anticipated as one of the most important matches the Premier League's 20-year history.[42][43] Manchester City won the match, thanks toVincent Kompany headed goal just before half-time. Touré's performance throughout the match garnered many plaudits in the media, describing his performance as "dominant" and "magnificent".[44]
Touré scored a brace on 6 May in City's 2–0 win overNewcastle United, moving three points above Manchester United with one match left to play in the Premier League season.[45] Touré played the full first half before coming off due to injury as City defeatedQueens Park Rangers 3–2 on the final day of the season, assistingPablo Zabaleta's opening goal in the 39th minute, to secure the first league championship for City in 44 years.[46]
Touré started the2012–13 season with a goal in theFA Community Shield in the 3–2 win overChelsea inAston Villa's stadiumVilla Park. This goal was followed up by scoring first for City in two games, against Liverpool atAnfield and against Queens Park Rangers at home. In City's openingUEFA Champions League match of the season, away toReal Madrid, Touré produced a stellar individual performance, assisting anEdin Džeko goal and continually worrying the hosts. However, despite his best efforts, City lost 3–2 to a lateCristiano Ronaldo goal. He also scored in theManchester derby, making it 2–1 to Manchester United, but City eventually lost 3–2. On 20 December 2012, Touré was crowned the 2012 African Player of the Year award at a ceremony inAccra, Ghana. It is the second time he has won the award.[47] On 24 February 2013, after returning from the2013 Africa Cup of Nations, Touré scored the opening goal as City beat Chelsea 2–0 in the Premier League.[48] On 4 April 2013, Touré signed a new contract with City, keeping him at the club until 2017.[49]
Touré scored his first goal of the2013–14 season with a free kick as City defeated Newcastle United 4–0 in their openingPremier League match. On 22 September 2013, he scored the second goal in a 4–1 derby win over Manchester United[50] and was named man of the match.[51] Under City managerManuel Pellegrini, Touré was promoted tovice-captain. He regularlycaptained the team in the first half of the 2013–14 season in the absence of Vincent Kompany.[52][53] On 2 December, Touré was named the 2013BBC African Footballer of the Year.[54]
On 4 December 2013, Touré scored twice for Manchester City in a 3–2 win at West Bromwich Albion. This took his tally of league goals to seven, his highest in a single Premier League season.[55] On 2 March 2014, Touré scored the equalising goal for Manchester City in the2014 League Cup final againstSunderland.[56]The match ended in a 3–1 win for Manchester City.[57] He scored the firsthat-trick of his career on 22 March in a 5–0 home win overFulham.[58] Touré scored the third goal for Manchester City on 25 March in the Manchester Derby atOld Trafford, helping City to a 3–0 victory over their local rivals.[59] On 18 April, Touré was named as one of the six players on the shortlist for thePFA Players' Player of the Year award[60] before being named in thePFA Team of the Year.[61]
On 7 May 2014, Touré scored his 20th Premier League goal of the season in a 4–0 win against Aston Villa, becoming only the second midfielder to score 20 goals in a Premier League season, afterFrank Lampard. His performances helped City to a second Premier League title in three years.[62]
On 20 May, Touré's agent posted onTwitter that he had become unhappy at Manchester City due to the time it took City to give him a new deal in 2013 and was upset that no-one from the club wished him happy birthday. His agent, Dimitri Seluk, toldBBC Sport that Toure was "very upset" and could leave City. Although he initially denied these rumours on Twitter, Touré later tweeted, "Everything Dimitri said is true. He speaks for me. I will explain after theWorld Cup."[63]
Touré completed more passes than any other player throughout the 2013–14 Premier League season, with 1,169 successful passes in total; he also made an average of 76.41 passes per game, and achieved an average passing accuracy of 90.76% throughout the course of the entire season.[64]
2014–2018: Later seasons and departure
On 5 November 2014, in a homeUEFA Champions League group fixture against CSKA Moscow, Touré scored City's equaliser in the eighth minute afterSeydou Doumbia had taken under two minutes to put CSKA ahead. City were already 2–1 down and hadFernandinho sent off when Touré was dismissed for shovingRoman Eremenko. The result put City into last place in their group.[65] On 1 March 2015, Touré started the Premier League match against Liverpool and his brotherKolo Touré came on as an 83rd-minute substitute, marking the first time the two brothers faced each other in a competitive match.[66]
On 10 August 2015, Touré scored as Manchester City defeated West Bromwich Albion 3–0 atThe Hawthorns in their opening fixture of the2015–16 Premier League season.[67] Although he played in the second leg of the Champions League play-off againstSteaua București, Guardiola opted to omit Touré from City's Champions League squad.[68] Touré's agent, Dimitri Seluk, subsequently stated that Guardiola humiliated Touré by omitting him for the first team. In response, Guardiola said Touré would not be included in the team until he receives an apology.[69] A few weeks after a public apology to Guardiola on behalf of his agent, Touré made a surprising return to the first team on 16 November, starting againstCrystal Palace in which he scored two goals to earn City a 2–1 away win.[70]
It was announced on 4 May 2018 that Touré would leave Manchester City at the end of the2017–18 season.[71] His final appearance came in the 3–1 win overBrighton & Hove Albion.[72]
Later career
Toure re-signed forSuper League Greece club Olympiacos on 2 September 2018.[73] His contract with Olympiacos was terminated in December 2018 by mutual agreement.[74]
On 3 July 2019, Touré joinedChina League One clubQingdao Huanghai.[75][76] He left the club on 1 January 2020.[citation needed] He started to work with his advisor, in Asia,Richard Harcus to help with his transition into coaching, with a lot of speculation as it whether he would continue playing in Asia for another season.[77]
Touré was a regular member of theIvory Coast national team from his debut in 2004 to the end of his international career after 2015. In 2014, he was named captain of the team following the retirement ofDidier Drogba.[78] Touré won his 100th internationalcap in his side's 0–0 draw withCameroon on 19 November 2014.[79]
Touré appeared in all three of Ivory Coast's matches at the2006 FIFA World Cup.[citation needed] In the2010 tournament, he again played in all three of his nation's games, scoring the opening goal in a 3–0 win overNorth Korea.[citation needed] Touré made his third and final World Cup tournament appearance during the2014 competition, and captained the team in their opening match, a 2–1 defeat ofJapan.[80]
Touré represented the Ivory Coast at sixAfrica Cup of Nations tournaments, in2006,2008,2010,2012,2013 and2015; his side ended as runners-up in the 2006 and 2012 editions, and won the tournament in 2015. Touré was named in theCAF's team of the tournament in2008,2012 and2015.[81] On 4 February 2015, Touré scored the opening goal in the Ivory Coast's 3–1 semi-final victory overDR Congo to qualify the team for their third Africa Cup of Nations final in nine years.[82] On 8 February, in thefinal held at theEstadio de Bata in Equatorial Guinea, Touré captained the Ivory Coast as they won a first AFCON title since1992, defeatingGhana in a penalty shoot-out.[83]
On 20 September 2016, Touré announced his retirement from international football.[84] He returned to the national team set-up in March 2018,[85] but would play no further games for the nation before his eventual retirement from professional football.
Style of play
Formerly astriker,[86] Touré played primarily in thecentre of the pitch as either aholding midfielder or as abox-to-box midfielder, often switching between offensive and defensive stances throughout matches in the latter role. Touré was a complete and versatile midfielder.[5][87] He was also capable of playing as acentre-back[5] or in thenumber 10 role.[87] His key strengths were his passing range, vision and physical ability. He was gifted with good technique and ball control, although he also excelled defensively at breaking down opposing attacking plays and winning back possession through his powerful tackling ability.[88][86] He was known for his pace, stamina and physical presence, which was often combined with runs from midfield, and he had been referred to as a "human train" and a "colossus" by various pundits.[89] Touré was frequently pushed forward during the latter part of matches, most notably in the penultimate match of the 2011–12 season against Newcastle United where Touré scored two late goals to win the match, and put Manchester City at the top of the league.[90][91] He was also capable of scoring goals due to his powerful striking ability from distance,[92] and his heading ability, as well as his adeptness at scoring fromfree kicks andpenalties.Jonathan Wilson, when writing forThe Guardian in 2013, described Touré as a holding midfielder who can "make tackles," and who was "capable of regaining the ball," while also noting that he frequently functioned "as the more creative player alongside a destroyer." He also added that "he likes to make forward surges." As such, he labelled Touré as a "carrier" or "surger," namely "a player capable of making late runs or carrying the ball at his feet."[93]
Touré had in his repertoire an unusual method of striking the ball, referred to by Norwegian footballerAlexander Tettey as a "Yaya", and described byBBC Sport'sPat Nevin as a way of striking the ball with a far back area of the foot close to the heel, allowing the ball to move in a straight line which a goalkeeper can find hard to read.[94]
Touré is the younger brother ofKolo Touré, who was his teammate at Manchester City and the Ivory Coast national team. Their younger brotherIbrahim Touré was also a footballer, who died on 19 June 2014 at the age of 28 after a short battle with cancer.[104][105] Touré is Muslim.[106]
On 13 December 2016, Touré pleaded guilty to drink driving. He was arrested by police on 28 November after being pulled over and found to be more than twice over the legal driving limit.[108][109] Touré said he had not "intentionally consumed alcohol", explaining to the court he had consumed diet cola from a jug at a party without realising there was brandy in it.[109] He conceded that his drink tasted "odd" and that he felt tired after consuming it, but did not suspect he was drunk.[106] Judge Gary Lucy said it was "inconceivable" that he was unaware that he was drinking alcohol.[106] Touré was banned from driving for 18 months, and was fined £54,000 – at the time the largest fine for drink driving in British legal history.[106]
In 2018, Yaya Touré acquired British citizenship.[110]
Awards and nominations
Touré was nominated in the Personality of the Year category at the2014 MTV Africa Music Awards.[111] In July 2014, Touré was nominated for Prize in Entertainment at the 2014The Future Africa Awards.[112] In December 2015, Touré won the BBC African Footballer of the Year on a public vote for the second time, after leading the Ivory Coast to victory in the 2015 African Cup of Nations.[113]
Career statistics
Club
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
^abcd"Touré, Yaya".National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved10 May 2018.
^ab"Туре Яя Гнегнері" [Touré Yaya Gnégnéri] (in Ukrainian). Ukrainian Association of Football. Retrieved7 November 2021.
^For UEFA Cup:Ionescu, Romeo (2009).The Complete Results & Line-ups of the UEFA Cup 2004–2009. Cleethorpes: Soccer Books. pp. 16–30.ISBN978-1-86223-187-0.
^For UEFA Champions League:Ionescu, Romeo (2009).The Complete Results & Line-ups of the European Champions League 2004–2009. Cleethorpes: Soccer Books. pp. 70–72.ISBN978-1-86223-186-3.
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