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Roberto Mancini has not given up hope of taking Yaya Toure to Inter Milan, claiming that the Ivory Coast star initiated six months of discussions by saying he wanted to leave the Etihad.
Toure’s agent Dimitry Seluk has since claimed that he will stay at the club, but former City boss Mancini says that he will not abandon hope of signing him until he hears it from the player himself.
‘He was the one who told me he wanted to look for new destinations,’ said Mancini.
‘I spent six months explaining to him what he would find at Inter, then he spoke with his club and he fell off the radar.
‘But I haven’t given up on this, I’m waiting to hear his own side of the story and in the meantime I remain hopeful. Or else why would he have spent six months telling me that he wanted to come to Milan?’
Toure, who was in Milan this week attending the 2015 World Expo, seemed set for a move away from the Premier League after a mixed campaign, with Inter a possible destination.
But 32-year-old midfielder then insisted he will definitely be staying at City, even going as far to suggest he could sign an extension to his current contract, which ends in 2017.
Mancini brought Toure to City in 2010 before being sacked by the club in 2013.
The duo had several fruitful seasons together at City, winning the FA Cup and qualifying for the Champions League for the first time in 2011, before winning the Premier League in 2012.
The announcement was made on Monday, June 15 at the the launch of a new tagline and campaign dubbed ‘It’s Now’ aimed at positioning the telecommunication service provider future strategy in Kenya and the African continent.Click & Close Ads
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According to Airtel Kenya CEO Adil El Youssefi, the partnership will see Toure support Airtel’s corporate social responsibility among in youth empowerment for development.
“The purpose of this tagline is to ensure that our relations to our consumers is a supportive relation," Youssefi said..
"That is, if we are your supportive friends, this is how we want you to feel about Airtel, this is how we want to differentiate ourselves from the rest and so on. We are not just a service provider but we want to go the extra step and see how this products and services help you to succeed in your daily life.”
Speaking on the campaign which seeks to nurture and grow talent in Africa through various consumer touch points such as sport, lifestyle and music, Toure says the project is close to his heart and hopes to mpact lives through it.
“Throughout my career I have been fortunate to have a great deal of success on the field," the Ivory Coast international said.
"However, I know that the strongest performances come only when you commit 100 percent to the task at hand and display the strength and mettle to give it your all.
“It’s Now” is a campaign that is close to my heart as it calls on Africans to embrace the opportunities around them to better their lives.
"I am glad to be working with Airtel, with its wide reach within Africa, in order to inspire many people.Yaya Touré has decided to stay at Manchester City after being assured he is a key figure in the club’s future by the owner, Sheikh Mansour.Click & Close Ads
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Touré looked to be on his way out of the Etihad Stadium this summer and Internazionale are keen to sign the midfielder.
Touré’s agent had earlier said the player would remain with City, having been assured he was a key figure in the club’s future by owner Sheikh Mansour.
And the 32-year-old has now spoken on the matter himself, telling the Manchester Evening News: “I will definitely stay. The fans don’t have to be worried.
“My target this year is to try to do everything possible to make this team improve well and I am sure with my experience, maybe I hope, with the players coming in a couple of weeks, a couple of months, definitely it is going to be a strong City next year.”
City finished eight points adrift of champions Chelsea in the recently completed Barclays Premier League season, and Touré has his eyes set not only on regaining the top domestic silverware but also on European glory.
“It is one of my big targets because City have been in the shadow of United for so long,” he said.
“Sometimes their fans are coming back, saying we are the top because we have already won the Champions League.
“What I want for the fans is the Champions League. I will do everything that’s possible.”
Touré has not been at his best this term after a highly impressive 2012-13 season, but vowed to come back refreshed in August after a summer break.
“I am looking at next season and I will start working again, because last season there has been a lot of football for me,” said Touré, who played in last summer’s World Cup finals in Brazil and in Ivory Coast’s victorious 2015 African Nations Cup campaign in Equatorial Guinea.
He also had to deal with the loss of his brother Ibrahim to cancer last year.
“There were difficult moments as well emotionally and physically,” he added. “Now is a good time to rest and next season you are going to see the top one.”
Earlier, his agent, Dimitri Seluk, had said Touré would remain at the club he joined from Barcelona five years ago.
Seluk said in the Sunday Mirror: “Yaya is staying – because Sheikh Mansour told him he must stay. Mansour told Yaya that he is still a very important player and that he was the first big player to join City after the takeover.
“He told him that City wouldn’t even discuss a sale. This is good. People have tried to say that Yaya only wanted more money, but it was never about money. It was only about respect.”
Seluk had previously claimed Touré was “90% certain” to leave City at the end of the season. He has made a number of erratic claims about Touré during the player’s time at the club.
City’s manager, Manuel Pellegrini, repeatedly stated his desire to hang on to the Ivorian, with the 32-year-old having two seasons left on his contract.
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Tuesday, June 16, 2015
