Yaya Toure has taken the unforeseen step as he offers to assist his former club out of their deep crisis, as it deepens with no remedy foresighted in the nearest future.
Toure spent three years at the Nou Camp, winning two LaLiga titles and the 2009 Champions League before heading to Manchester City.
‘In football, you never know what tomorrow will bring, it may be a difficult time for the club but my belief for Barcelona is strong,’ Toure tweeted on Saturday, hours before Ronald Koeman’s side were beaten 2-0 at LaLiga champions Atletico Madrid.
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‘I will always be available for the club should they need me anytime as my heart is forever with the club, the people and the fans!’
Barca is in financial ruin, over £1billion in debt and last week saw their wage bill slashed to a maximum of £90million, equivalent to that of Watford. It may be a difficult time for the club but Toure’s belief in FC Barcelona is strong. He asserted that he would always be available for the club should they need him anytime as his heart is forever with the club, the people and the fans!
My time at @FCBarcelona was one of the best memories of my playing career. The club has decided to trust me when I was still a young player, yet to establish myself in the top leagues. I will forever be grateful to the club for what they have done for me.
Barca’s financial crisis meant they were unable to afford to keep Lionel Messi and forced them to send Antoine Griezmann out on loan to Atletico Madrid on transfer deadline day. They are also in crisis on the pitch, stumbling in LaLiga and losing both of their opening Champions League group stage games for the first time ever.
Toure, however, seems like an unlikely figure to help restore Barca to their former glories. The Ivorian retired from playing last year after seeing out his career in China and is in the early stages of his journey as a coach.
He is currently working as an assistant at Russian Premier League side Akhmat Grozny, having previously worked as an assistant for Olimpik Donetsk. And although the pressure is growing on Barca coach Ronald Koeman, it seems unlikely that Barca would turn to Toure as a successor.
Although his spell in Catalonia was brief, Toure is eternally grateful to the club for giving him the platform to prove himself as one of the best midfielders in the world and wants to help the club out in their hour of need. [AF]
