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Guardiola thinks he's 'God', snipes Toure's agent

Guardiola thinks hes God, snipes Toures agent

Yaya Toure row refuses to end

London - Four-time African Player of the Year Yaya Toure's chances of ever playing for Manchester City again diminished

Published: Fri 23 Sep 2016, 11:35 PM

Updated: Sat 24 Sep 2016, 1:38 AM

  • By
  • AFP

Four-time African Player of the Year Yaya Toure's chances of ever playing for Manchester City again diminished further Friday after his fiery agent launched another withering attack on club manager Pep Guardiola.
Guardiola had said earlier this week Toure would not play for the club until his agent Dimitri Seluk apologised for accusing the Spaniard of 'humiliating' the 33-year-old Ivorian midfielder after omitting him from the Champions League squad.
Rather than back down Seluk - who is regarded as a father figure by Toure and by his elder brother Celtic defender Kolo Toure - launched into Guardiola on the BBC's World Football Podcast.
"Pep Guardiola - he thinks only about himself. He thinks he is already God," said the Ukrainian.
"He won with Barcelona many titles but Yaya also won the same titles with Barcelona (Toure was in fact sold in 2010 and Guardiola stayed till 2012 accruing more silverware).
"Pep thinks now he has won everything and he can do what he wants."
Seluk, who numbers on his client roster largely eastern European or African players plying their trade in eastern Europe, said Guardiola had treated long serving City players with total disrespect.
"For me, very strange things (have happened) in Manchester City because Yaya played with them many years, (Joe) Hart played with them many years, I don't know, (Vincent) Kompany played many years, and (in) comes a new coach and says, 'Okay, these players out like dogs'," said Seluk.
Toure, who announced his retirement from international duty moments before Guardiola revealed he was out in the cold, has not figured in a single City match-day squad since Seluk made his initial remarks.
"The day after that, his agent spoke and in that moment, Yaya is out," Guardiola told a press conference on Tuesday.
"Unless Mr Dimitri Seluk comes back to the press or to his friends in the media - because he hasn't the courage to call me, he goes to the media - and apologises to Manchester City first of all, then his team-mates and afterwards the trainer.
"When that happens, Yaya will be part of the group and he will have the chance to play."
Toure, who is in the final year of his contract at the Etihad Stadium, has featured just once for City since Guardiola's arrival.
He played the full 90 minutes of their Champions League play-off second-leg victory over Steaua Bucharest in August.


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