Cote d’Ivoire Player Profile : Yaya Toure

Cote d’Ivoire midfielder Yaya Gnegneri Toure was born in Cote d’Ivoire on the 13 May 1983. He is the younger brother of Arsenal and Cote d’Ivoire defender Kolo Toure and is a regular in both the Ivorian national team and Greek side Olympiacos.

He started is football career with the famous ASEC Abidjan academy which has produced Cote d’Ivoire’s prominent players in the last decade. At the age of 18 he moved to Belgium club KSK Bereven, and stayed at the Belgian club for two-and-a-half seasons, scoring 3 goals in 70 league matches.

In January 2004, as KSK Bereven were hit with financial crisis he was transferred to Metalurh Donetsk for 2.1million euros where he quickly made a name for himself.

His performances at the Belgian side had caught the eye of Club Brugge KV’s former head coach Trond Sollied; who later became the head coach of Olympiacos CFP in the summer of 2005. He subsequently signed Yaya on a three year contract.

The young Ivorian impressed during the recently concluded African Nations Cup. In the quarter-final against Cameroon, and especially in the semi-final against Nigeria, Yaya Toure alongside Didier Zokora helped to neutralise the threat of established stars like Jay Jay Okocha and Nwankwo Kanu.

The World Cup finals in Germany will be an opportunity for the versatile midfielder to showcase his talents and possibly seal his dream move to a very big club.

There are rumours circulating in Europe already that clubs such as Arsenal, Chelsea, Juventus and Manchester United are all interested in signing the midfield enforcer.

His older brother Kolo has recommended him to boss Arsene Wenger. Yaya did have a trial with Arsenal during his early days at Bereven. However boss Arsene Wenger couldn’t sign him due to problems securing a work permit for him.

Yaya Toure normally referred to as the ‘new Patrick Vieira’ because of his stature, is a dynamic runner who moves fast in closing down opponents, denying them time and space in midfield.

He is definitely one to watch at the World Cup Finals.