Yaya Touré has hailed what he called the "new era" of African managers, with the former Manchester City and Ivory Coast star becoming the first head coach from the continent to take charge of a team in the UEFA Champions League tonight.
The ex-Barcelona and Manchester City midfielder leads Slovan Bratislava against Paris Saint-Germain in the opening round of the league phase.
Touré, 43, walked away from his role as assistant coach with the Saudi Arabia national team to take the Bratislava job last July. Slovan have been domestic league champions for the last eight seasons.
He then guided them through three qualifying rounds to reach the league phase.
No African coach has ever led a team in the Champions League, though European coaches born in Africa have managed in the competition. The Portuguese pair Carlos Queiroz and Paulo Fonseca, the latter born in Mozambique, are examples, while Frenchman Jean Tigana was born in Bamako.
The matter is a little strange
On the eve of the match, Touré said: "It is true that the matter seems a little strange, but on a personal level, it is really wonderful. This is an important new era. We can say that things are changing now and moving forward."
He continued: "There are people who have enough courage to hire young coaches, enthusiastic to work, who want to push things forward in a positive way," according to Yahoo Sport.
Thanking the club's management, including former Slovakia striker Robert Vittek as sporting director, Touré said the opportunity meant everything "because it is not easy. It is extremely difficult for us. We have to work two or three times harder" to get such a chance.
Facing Enrique
Touré won 97 caps for his country. He was also part of the Barcelona side under Pep Guardiola that lifted the Champions League in 2009.
His new team won their first four league matches this season before losing two on the bounce ahead of the trip to Paris. Even so, he insists there is no pressure on Slovan, who lost all eight of their matches on their last appearance in the league phase two years ago, as they face the side of Luis Enrique, the two-time reigning champion.
He affirmed: "It is a pleasure. Luis Enrique is a great coach and one of the best coaches at the moment. So playing against his team is a pleasure in itself."