Yaya Touré Claims Pep Guardiola Was "Cruel" To Him

Departing Man City hero has also questioned Guardiola's thoughts on African players.

by Jamie Kennedy
yaya toure manchester city
© PETER POWELL/epa/Corbis

Departing Man City midfielder Yaya Touré has hit out at manager Pep Guardiola during a stunning interview with France Football. The 35-year old, who played a limited role in City's march towards the Premier League title last season, said the Spaniard was "cruel" to him and hinted he has a problem with players from Africa.

This isn't the first time Yaya has been critical of Guardiola. At Barcelona, he revealed other African players joined him in questioning whether or not Pep had their best interests at heart.

Historically, Touré has a bit of a reputation for sulking. In 2014, his agent released a statement saying he was unhappy that City hadn't properly acknowledged his birthday, and he even considered leaving the club as a result.

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Now, the outgoing Ivorian has said he promises to send Guardiola his own cake the day he picks a "team with five Africans in it".

The whole situation is rather bizarre, especially when taking into account the fact Guardiola spoke highly of Touré to Man City's official YouTube channel shortly before the player's final club appearance at the tail end of last season.

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Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.