Yaya Touré is free to join any Premier League club in January, with Manchester City prepared to allow the midfielder to leave for a direct rival.

Touré has yet to decide if he wants to depart in the winter window despite Pep Guardiola’s declaration that the Ivorian will not play for City again unless his agent, Dimitri Seluk, apologises. It is understood the club would countenance the Ivorian moving to another domestic team even if they are challenging City for the title.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/sep/21/yaya-toure-free-to-leave-manchester-city-for-any-premier-league-club?CMP=share_btn_tw

Yaya Touré did not know he had been frozen out by Pep Guardiola until the Manchester City manager revealed it publicly on Tuesday.

Before Wednesday night’s EFL Cup trip to Swansea City Guardiola said Touré would never play again for the club unless his agent, Dimitri Seluk, offered an apology.

The Ivorian was bemused to find out via the media rather than be informed personally by Guardiola of his changed status. Despite having featured only once this term – in August’s Champions League play-off second-leg against Steaua Bucharest (when City were already 5-0 up from the first leg) – Touré had been training conscientiously and was determined to force his way back into the Catalan’s first-team plans. The 33-year-old is understood to have caused no friction at the club despite his lack of playing time and Guardiola has stated more than once that Touré has been no problem.

On Tuesday the manager called him a “good guy” but was clear Seluk has to say sorry to the club, the other players, and Guardiola for claiming the 45-year-old disrespected Touré when leaving him out of the 25-man Champions League squad.

This took Touré by surprise and the player is disappointed at how he has been treated by Guardiola given his professional attitude, believing he should not be penalised for the actions of Seluk. As he was caught unaware by the manager’s announcement Touré has given no thought to his future and if he might now leave in the January transfer window.

Touré is free to join any Premier League club then, with City prepared to allow the midfielder to leave for a direct rival. The hierarchy would countenance the Ivorian moving to another domestic team even if they are challenging City for the title.

The view at the Etihad Stadium is that at 33, Touré’s best days are behind him and so if the midfielder were to attract interest he would be unlikely to damage City’s chances of success.

There is an outside prospect he could play for City again and see out a contract worth £220,000-a-week that finishes next June. This means he can sign a pre-contract agreement from January to join a new club in the summer. Internazionale were intent on signing him last summer but Touré decided against the move despite the prospect of playing again under Roberto Mancini, who has since left the Italian club. The midfielder also rejected the chance last summer to join two Chinese sides, Shanghai SIPG and Jiangsu Suning, in deals that would have been worth around £30m to him.

As Touré also retired from international football with the Ivory Coast on Tuesday there is the prospect of him playing no football at all until next season unless he does depart City in January.

Even if Seluk were to apologise it appears unlikely Touré will become a regular in the first-team again, so his career at the club may be materially over whatever occurs in the future.

Since Touré to joined City from Barcelona in the summer of 2010 the Ivorian has been an integral part of the club’s recent success. In 2011 he scored the winners in the semi-final and final of the FA Cup to secure City a first major trophy since 1976. Touré was also the driving forced in each of the Premier League title triumphs in 2012 and 2014, while also being part of the League Cup-winning sides in 2016 and two years before.

During his six years at City Toure has been voted the African Footballer of the Year four times, and led Ivory Coast to the Africa Cup of Nations in February 2015.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2016/sep/21/yaya-toure-pep-guardiola-manchester-city?CMP=share_btn_tw

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is humiliating Yaya Toure to exact revenge, claims Dimitri Seluk

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/pep-guardiola-yaya-toure-seluk-9151696

Agreed

Yaya at West Ham ffs. But yeah, I imagine some Chinese team will give him 300K+ per week for two years no problem.

Yaya wrote:Please see my statement on the situation at Manchester City:
"I wish to apologise - on behalf of myself and those who represent me - to the management team and all those working at the club for the misunderstandings from the past.
"Those statements do not represent my views on the club or the people who work there.
"I have nothing but respect for Manchester City and only wish the best for the football club.
"I am immensely proud to have played a part in the club's history and want to help City succeed further. I live to play football and entertain the fans.
"On that note, I would like to thank all of the fans for their messages through this difficult period. This means a great deal to me and my family."

Pep

Is there a better coach nowadays at getting rid of dead weights and then making them apologize to play?

seriously how many times do we see coaches and club bend around big name players? Even Yaya Toure mouthful agent is apologizing in the mirror

Dimitri Seluk (Yaya Touré's agent): "I'm not apologising. We want peace, but I'm not apologising. Apologise for what? Maybe Touré has apologised for this, but I don't know for what."

agents are the cancer of football.

ES wrote:Dimitri Seluk (Yaya Touré's agent): "I'm not apologising. We want peace, but I'm not apologising. Apologise for what? Maybe Touré has apologised for this, but I don't know for what."

The definition of a ride or die manager.

Good man lol.

African POTY confirmed

Boycotting the award if he doesn't win it

You have to wonder how many matches City would have won (when they were on 7 matches without a win) if Pep hadn't gotten his ego ahead of the team and played Yaya.

And here I've been recently been wondering how many more CL matches City would have won if Yaya didn't let his ego get ahead of the team

Weird

Yaya Toure has hit out at Pep Guardiola, claiming the Manchester City coach has a problem with players from Africa.

"I tried to understand it and I even asked coaches for my stats. When I realised that they were as good or better, both in training and in matches, as those who played and were younger than me, I understood that it was not question of physicality. I don't know why but I have the impression that he was jealous, he took me for a rival.

"He was cruel with me. Do you really think he could've been like that with Andres Iniesta? It got to the point I asked myself if it was because of my colour. I'm not the first, other Barca players asked the question too.

"Maybe us Africans aren't always treated the same by certain people. When you see the problems [Pep] has often had with African players, everywhere he has been, I ask myself questions.

"He's too intelligent to be caught. He'll never admit [not liking African players]. But the day he picks a team with five Africans in it, I promise I will send him a cake!

"Beyond that, Pep likes to dominate and wants to have obedient players who kiss his hands. I don't like that kind of relationship. I respect my coach but I'm not his thing."

But Pep did love Seydou Keita.. a lot or maybe it's the expection that confirms the rule ( I'm not racist , I have one black firnd lol )

Everyone knew excatly how this season was going to be if he stayed , he can't blame Pep for this one honestly.

I mean if he was a full blown racist he would have got rid of Yaya immediately no?

Played him quite a lot in his first season and didn't get rid of him in the 2nd season like everyone expected.

None of this happens if he was a racist IMO.

Great Leader Sprucenuce wrote:I mean if he was a full blown racist he would have got rid of Yaya immediately no?

Played him quite a lot in his first season and didn't get rid of him in the 2nd season like everyone expected.

None of this happens if he was a racist IMO.

You don't ditch someone you don't like

My favourite is Yaya comparing himself to Iniesta

What a time to be alive

Yaya comparing himself to a small white man.

WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE.

I dream of a day that Iniesta is judged for the content of his character and not the colour of his skin

justice for unique

Firenze wrote:other Barca players asked the question too.

Yeah, who exactly? Pep loved Abidal, Keita, Eto'o; never had issues with dark skinned players.

What an absolute melt.

Yaya's the type of player that believes himself to be the GOAT. Easier to grasp at straws than to accept he's old and almost finished, I guess?

HOWEVER

seemed to have been frozen out of the squad last season and you have melts like Gundogan being given minutes and offering zilch

Firenze wrote:
seemed to have been frozen out of the squad last season and you have melts like Gundogan being given minutes and offering zilch

Pep looking like an idiot with the amount playing time he offered Yaya instead of giving it to Foden. Yaya had like 883 minutes of football instead of Zero

Myesyats wrote:

Firenze wrote:other Barca players asked the question too.

Yeah, who exactly? Pep loved Abidal, Keita, Eto'o; never had issues with dark skinned players.

What an absolute melt.

I don't know about the other two, but Eto'o said himself that Pep mistreated him and that he was a hypocrite (among other things). So yes, Pep definitely had problems with some African players. Now, was it due to the color of their skin or something else? Nobody knows, except for Pep himself.