Manchester City’s Ivorian midfielder Yaya Toure will leave the club at the end of the current season.
The Citizens’ coach Pep Guardiola announced Yaya’s departure on Friday during a press briefing on his team’s preparation ahead of Sunday’s game against Huddersfield Town.
“Yaya is not going to stay next season. The Brighton game, we will focus on winning and Yaya. We are going to try and win the game for him. Yaya came here at the start of the journey. Where we are now is because of what he has done. He was a key player,” Pep said.
The 34-year-old joined the Manchester club from Spanish giants Barcelona in 2010.
He has gone on to make 229 Premier League appearances for Man City, scoring 62 times and grabbing 32 assists.
The Ivorian signed a one year contract extension in June 2017 to keep him at the Etihad for the 2017/18 season, though he found playing time hard to come by as Pep led the side to a Premier League title in his second season in charge.
Yaya has won two Premier League titles, an FA Cup and two League Cups in his time at the club.
#PEP: @YayaToure is not going to stay next season. The Brighton game, we will focus on winning and Yaya. We are going to try and win the game for him. Yaya came here at the start of the journey. Where we are now is because of what he has done. He was a key player. #mancity
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 4, 2018
Not crying… Promise! 😭 #mancity
💙 @YayaToure 💙 pic.twitter.com/O7sx8cDGZR
— Manchester City (@ManCity) May 4, 2018
