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Yaya Toure Must Apologise Before He Returns – Guardiola

Back in 2014, he was making a big deal out of City failing to provide a birthday cake for the Yaya Toure.

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The agent continued the theme on Wednesday, claiming that Guardiola – then leading Barcelona – verbally disparaged City when Toure left Camp Nou in 2010.

Yaya Toure’s future at Manchester City seems to be uncertain at present with manager Pep Guardiola and his agent Dimitri Seluk feuding over the Ivory COast star’s omission from the club’s Champions League squad.

The 19-year-old has 16 goals from 30 league appearances for Palmeiras in 2016, and his performances prompted interest from Europe’s biggest clubs during the recent transfer window.

With 10 months still to go in his contract, Toure will have picked about £10million if his agent does not apologise to the Guardiola and the club. “It is what my players are doing”, he said. He (Toure) has not had the courage to call me. From that moment he was out.

When asked for the reason, Guardiola, said: “It was so hard for me to put him out of the Champions League, so hard”.

I can not imagine when I was a player that my manager would go to the media and speak against (ex-Barca coach) Johan Cruyff and say about this and that.

“If he has a problem he should speak to people at the club”, said Guardiola. “But until he speaks, Yaya isn’t going to play”.

“Pep was successful at Barcelona and Bayern Munich, but take a look behind that success”, he said.

“Manchester City have already established a nice lead in the Premier League, but I know Pep and he will not allow complacency in the dressing room”.

“I hear a lot of things that are not true about what is happening now”, Guardiola added.

I don’t why I – or Yaya – must apologise because I didn’t say anything special. He has reacted to what I have said about him by punishing Yaya again.

He replied: “If Pep Guardiola wants a war then he can have one”.

The Manchester City player who was immediate captain of his national team led them to their second-ever African Nations Cup title in 2015. ‘If Pep wants to prove himself as a great manager, then he should go to Zaragoza or Sunderland.

Far from backing down, Seluk launched a lengthy tirade in response – via interviews with Sky Sports News and the Daily Mirror – in which he belittled Guardiola’s achievements and questioned his integrity over City announcing his appointment while Manuel Pellegrini remained at the helm last season.

He called it a “catastrophic mistake” which “destroyed the spirit in the changing room”.

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Guardiola is desperate to keep a lid on expectations after City’s supreme start to the season. Manchester City have not come close to winning this completion with Toure in their team.

Pep Guardiola Dimitri Seluk Yaya Toure