On this day seven years ago, Manchester City signed Yaya Toure from Barcelona for a fee believed to be in the region of £24 million, and as a result we got more football wisdom from Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson.
Toure's seven year anniversary as a City player, a stint in which he has lifted two Premier League titles, two League Cups, and cemented himself as one of the greatest players ever to play in the Premier League, has led to an infamous quote from Merson doing the rounds again.
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Image: PA
Back in 2010, 'Merse' was tasked with showering us all with his innate insight and knowledge on summer transfers and the real gem came when discussing Toure.
The former Arsenal man described the Ivorian as "an average player" that didn't have goalscoring or goal-creating abilities in his locker, and told us how he was nothing more than an "OK holding midfield player" who didn't add anything that Gareth Barry, Patrick Vieira and Nigel De Jong, all playing for City at the time, didn't already bring to the table.
Here is that Merson quote that has been shared all over social media:
It would be fair to say that this is another instance where Merson was a bit wrong with his predictions, wouldn't it?
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Toure has since thrived at the Etihad, arguably becoming the club's greatest ever player and earning a reputation for producing big moments in big games - the FA Cup semi-final and final in 2011 to give City their first trophy in 35 years, his brace against Newcastle to give one hand on the Premier League title the season after and the decisive spot-kick against Liverpool in the 2015/16 EFL Cup final to name just a few.
Image: PA
His 2013/14 form under Manuel Pellegrini was utterly irresistible and saw him net an excellent 20 Premier League goals from midfield, as well as chipping in with nine assists.
While his annoying agent Dimitri Seluk has done his best to sabotage his City career, as evidenced in the birthday saga and the constant berating of Pep Guardiola, Toure has maintained professional and worked incredibly hard to get back into Guardiola's good books midway through last season, ultimately earning a new one-year deal at the club.
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Manchester City, Paul Merson, Premier League, Yaya Toure
