Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
YAYA AIMS TO JOIN ETIHAD RIVAL
YAYA TOURE could come back to haunt Manchester City next season after telling interested clubs that he wants to stay in the Premier League.
The Ivory Coast midfielder is out of contract at the end of the season and is now open to offers after City failed to hand him a new deal.
Sunday Mirror Sport understands that Toure has already been approached by a number of English clubs and also has offers on the table from Italy. But he wants to stay in the Premier League and is looking to land a two-year deal.
That is bad news for City, who tried to force the 33-year-old to go abroad last summer.
The Blues told Toure that they would cut him a favourable deal if he agreed to move to another country because they did not want to see him in the shirt of a rival.
But the midfielder decided to stay at the Etihad and then returned to Pep Guardiola’s plans in November after a peace deal was brokered between his agent and the City boss.
Toure has been one of City’s most consistent performers since returning to the team and was hoping he had done enough to win an extension to his £225,000-a-week deal.
But City are yet to offer any of the six players who are out of contract in the summer a fresh deal.
And Toure now wants to agree terms with his next club by the end of the month.
The former Barcelona star joined City for £24million in 2010 and has been instrumental in two Premier League title wins, two League Cup successes and their FA Cup triumph.
City insiders insist that Guardiola is yet to make a final decision on any of the players who will be free to leave in June.
But Toure is listening to offers now.