Tottenham Hotspur are set to hold talks with former Barcelona and Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure about taking up a full-time coaching role at the club.
Toure, 38, who retired from professional football in 2020, has been working towards his UEFA A Licence this season as he aims to develop the next stage of his career, in the hope of working his way into a senior position in the future.
The Evening Standard have reported that Tottenham are looking to offer the Ivorian a full-time coaching role at the club after heavily impressing with their under 18s this season, with talks scheduled for a later date this month.
According to the report, Toure was initially only working one day a week under the supervision of academy manager Dean Rastrick, head of coaching Chris Powell and coach Stuart Lewis, but his role has gradually become more prominent during his five-month tenure.
Tottenham’s U18s finished ninth in the 14-team Premier League South this season, which was in part due to their disappointing end to the campaign that saw them fail to win their final three matches, while they were thumped 5-0 in a North London derby by Arsenal in their last fixture.
However, it is clear that the youth team have benefitted from the guidance of Toure, who has won three Premier League’s, two La Liga’s and one Champions League, as several players have worked their way into the U23 team, leaving the club very happy with his progress.
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Toure has previously praised Tottenham’s youngsters for being “smart” and “clever” in an interview with The Times earlier this year, saying: “It’s important I go through the steps. I’m working with the academy now, it’s a nice step to learn. The U18s’ passion is incredible and they are so smart and so clever. You can set up tactics and one of them will ask a question you have not thought about.”
The former Ivory Coast international is keen to land a job in north London ahead of next season, and as he lives within the local area in Hampstead, it could well play into Tottenham’s hands should they wish to keep him on their books for longer, in what would be a good move for everyone involved.
However, the 38-year-old has also had a coaching offer from Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta this season, with the pair knowing each other from their Man City days. The Spaniard said earlier this year : “He has my number because we’ve spent some years together at City. He is a player I appreciate a lot so he can call me and ask me the question.”
Since retiring in 2020 after ending his playing career with China League One side Qingdao Huanghai, Toure has gained coaching experience in short-term roles at both Ukrainian First League club Olimpik Donetsk and Russian Premier League side Akhmat Grozny, both in 2021.
The Man City legend also spent time at Leyton Orient during pre-season, before joining the academy ranks at Spurs half-way through the current campaign back in December. Impressively, Toure has done enough with the under 18s to warrant Spurs to schedule talks later this month for a full-time role.
Whether that would provide an opportunity for him to work his way up to the first team is unclear, but he will hope to follow in the footsteps of his older brother and former teammate, Kolo, who is currently a first team coach at Leicester City as well as a member of the coaching staff for the Ivory Coast national team.
