Kolo Habib Touré, Ivory Coast – Central Defender

Kolo Habib Touré (born 19 March 1981) is a football player who currently plays, and captains English Premier League club Manchester City and plays for the Ivorian national team. Touré is a central defender renowned for his pace, strength and athleticism.

After a short trial, Touré joined Arsenal in February 2002 from ASEC Mimosas for £150,000. He quickly established himself as one of the best centre backs in the Premier League. He is established as a permanent fixture in the Arsenal starting XI, and a firm fan favourite. In the 2005–06 season, he established a formidable defensive partnership with Philippe Senderos. Both centre backs had immaculate form towards the end of the season, helping the Arsenal team reach the 2006 Champions League Final after keeping 10 consecutive clean sheets (a European competition record). After his imperious displays in the Champions League, his stock rose dramatically, he was now regarded as one of the finest in the world in his position. The Italian press even went as far as labeling him the “African Fabio Cannavaro” after Arsenal knocked Juventus out of the competition. Touré became widely regarded as one of the best defenders in the world after the UEFA Champions League run in 2006.

After much transfer speculation, it was announced on 28 July 2009 that Manchester City had agreed a fee of £14 million for Kolo Touré. He signed a four-year contract with the club of which has the option of extending by a further 5 years. He was appointed the club captain by former manager, Mark Hughes. He scored his first goal for Manchester City in a 2-1 Carling Cup win over Fulham on 23 September 2009. He scored his first league goal for City against Burnley on 7 November 2009.

Touré has played for Côte d’Ivoire since 2000. His debut was in April 2000 against Rwanda. He is a first choice central defender. He played in all five games for the Côte d’Ivoire as they finished runners up to the hosts in the African Cup of Nations in Egypt in January 2006. He was named in the 23-man squad taken by coach Henri Michel to the 2006 FIFA World Cup and made his first appearance in a World Cup on 11 June 2006 in Côte d’Ivoire’s 1–2 loss toArgentina. He has scored two goals for the Ivory Coast in his seventy caps to date.

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