Yaya Toure is about to take on his first coaching job with a Champions League team, as the Man City legend has reportedly agreed to the deal.
Manchester City legend Yaya Toure is set to manage a club in the Champions League next season, according to reports. Toure, who won six trophies with City, including three Premier League titles, retired from professional football in 2019.
Since then, the Ivorian star has moved into coaching, working with clubs around the world. He even spent time as an academy coach at Tottenham Hotspur while Antonio Conte was there. In November 2023, Toure teamed up with former City boss Roberto Mancini as assistant manager of the Saudi Arabia national team.
He earned his UEFA Pro Licence in January last year and is now ready to take charge of his first professional club. According to Sky Sports reporter Anthony Joseph, Toure has agreed to manage Slovan Bratislava, Slovakia’s top division champions.
Slovan Bratislava had been led for five years by Vladimir Weiss, who recently stepped down to become Slovakia’s national team coach. Thanks to their league win, they’ve secured a spot in the Champions League qualifying rounds as Slovakia’s only representative.
Bratislava will start in the second qualifying round, alongside teams like Scottish Premiership runners-up Hearts and 1991 European Cup winners Red Star Belgrade. Last season, they played in the Champions League but struggled, finishing near the bottom of their group.
This season, they took part in the Conference League and had some home wins but missed the play-off stage. Bratislava is Slovakia’s most successful team, having won the European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1969 by beating Barcelona in the final.
Before Toure agreed, former Tottenham and Liverpool striker Robbie Keane was linked to the job. Keane had also been in talks to manage Celtic but faced criticism for staying with Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv during tough times.
Toure’s assistant will have a link to Scottish football too. Reports say former Celtic, Swansea, and Republic of Ireland defender Darren O’Dea will join him on this new journey.