Yaya Toure: Ex-Ivory Coast star appointed as assistant coach for Saudi Arabia

Yaya Toure Appointed as Assistant Coach for Saudi Arabia National Team

In a surprising move, former Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure has been named the assistant coach of the Saudi Arabia national team. This collaboration reunites Toure with his former manager Roberto Mancini, who previously coached him during their time together at Manchester City.

Mancini took up the role as head coach of Saudi Arabia in August and has since led the team in four matches. Now, he will be joined by Toure to further strengthen their coaching staff.

Toure’s transition into coaching began in 2019 after retiring from professional football. He leaves behind his position at Belgian club Standard Liege to take on this new challenge. During his playing career, which spanned eight years at Manchester City after joining in 2010, Toure achieved remarkable success and won numerous accolades across different countries including Greece, Spain, England and China.

Aside from coaching experience gained at Standard Liege, Toure has also worked with clubs such as Ukrainian side Donetsk Olympic and Russia’s Grozny. Additionally, he served as an academy coach at Tottenham Hotspur. With these varied experiences under his belt along with international achievements representing Ivory Coast – where he earned an impressive 101 caps – including winning the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015,Toure brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to share with the Saudi Arabian team.