|
|
Roberto Mancini Says Kolo Toure Will Not Be Allowed To Leave Manchester City In January But Could Depart In Summer
The Italian also insisted the defender had been misquoted when he was reported as saying he was being discriminated against by the club for playing for his country
07-Dec-2011 5:25:00 PM
By Joel Lamy
Roberto Mancini has said Kolo Toure will not be allowed to leave Manchester City until at least the summer despite complaining about a lack of game time.
Toure was banned for six months for a failed drugs test which he blamed on taking his wife’s slimming pills, but since his return has been unable to displace Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott in the team.
He has recently voiced his frustration at finding it hard to get on the pitch and said he could be open to a move to Paris Saint-Germain should he not receive more opportunities.
But Mancini insisted that Toure was not going to be leaving in January although he left the door open for a move in the summer should the defender ask him for a transfer.
“Kolo is part of our plans for the year, he is a good player and a good guy – he cannot go, because we have injuries and we need his experience,” the Italian told reporters.
“If, in the summer, he says, ‘Boss, I want to leave because I want to play’, I will respect him as a man and we will talk.”
Toure caused controversy with comments published in a French magazine where he was quoted as saying he was being discriminated against for wanting to play for Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations.
Mancini, though, said he had spoken to Toure, who made a public denial on the club’s website, and that he had reassured him his quotes had been taken out of context, with City reportedly thinking about suing the magazine over the article.
He added: “I spoke with Kolo and he told me he didn’t say anything like this, so we have no problem. It is finished, because he is a good man and I believe him.
“Before training he said, ‘Boss, sorry. It will say I said this, but I didn’t,’ so it is okay.”
Toure was banned for six months for a failed drugs test which he blamed on taking his wife’s slimming pills, but since his return has been unable to displace Vincent Kompany and Joleon Lescott in the team.
He has recently voiced his frustration at finding it hard to get on the pitch and said he could be open to a move to Paris Saint-Germain should he not receive more opportunities.
But Mancini insisted that Toure was not going to be leaving in January although he left the door open for a move in the summer should the defender ask him for a transfer.
“Kolo is part of our plans for the year, he is a good player and a good guy – he cannot go, because we have injuries and we need his experience,” the Italian told reporters.
“If, in the summer, he says, ‘Boss, I want to leave because I want to play’, I will respect him as a man and we will talk.”
Toure caused controversy with comments published in a French magazine where he was quoted as saying he was being discriminated against for wanting to play for Ivory Coast in the Africa Cup of Nations.
Mancini, though, said he had spoken to Toure, who made a public denial on the club’s website, and that he had reassured him his quotes had been taken out of context, with City reportedly thinking about suing the magazine over the article.
He added: “I spoke with Kolo and he told me he didn’t say anything like this, so we have no problem. It is finished, because he is a good man and I believe him.
“Before training he said, ‘Boss, sorry. It will say I said this, but I didn’t,’ so it is okay.”
How do you stay up to date with football when on the move? With http://m.goal.com – your best source for mobile coverage of the beautiful game.
Inside Goal.Com
-
Euro 2012 Group D: Stats to keep at your fingertips
With the final edition of the statistical overview, we take a look at hosts and heavyweights in Group D
-
Blast from the Past - Euro 1976 Final: Czechoslovakia 2(5)-(3)2 West Germany
This edition of Blast from the Past brings a highly eccentric clash between Czechoslovakia and Germany in the Euro 1976 Final.
-
Blast from the Past - Euro 1972 Semi-finals: Belgium 1-2 West Germany
In the latest piece of Blast from the Past, Goal.com takes a look at one of the best matches for the tournament's 1972 edition...
-
Poll: Who will be most missed at Euro 2012?
Several key players from the top teams in the competition will be absent from the Poland and Ukraine, but Goal.com asks whose loss from the tournament will be felt the greatest
-
The list of EPL targets from Euro 2012 Group A
With the transfer rumour mill set to kick into frenzy throughout this month's European Championship, Goal.com looks at which players could be heading for England this summer