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Former Arsenal and Manchester City defender Kolo Toure has opened up about balancing fasting and playing as a top-level footballer during Ramadan.
Toure, who won two Premier League titles, is a devout Muslim. Many Premier League footballers are part of the Islam religion and that can prove difficult during Ramadan.
The religious festival, which begins on Saturday 2 April this year, sees Muslims not eat or drink during daylight hours as they show their devotion to Allah and one of the five pillars of Islam. They also pray regularly and give to charity.
And Arsenal's Invincibles member Toure, has discussed the challenges of following his religion during the one-month period and how he tried to disguise his fasting from teammates.
"I think the not drinking water or hot fluids in your body is the most difficult as a football player," Toure told Sky Sports as part of the Ramadan and Me series.
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But as soon as you start Ramadan the first day is very hard, the second day is really hard. The first week is very hard. And then your body just gets used to it, and you don't even start thinking about water.
“I never had any issue with that. You have to respect people around you. You’re doing your own thing, but you’re working in an environment and you’re working with other people.
“You have to try to be as disciplined as possible. When you come on the pitch and train with your teammates, you give 100% and you have to make sure they don’t notice you’re doing fasting.
“That’s the key. That’s what I try to do every time. I try to be more focused at training, and I try not to show any weaknesses.”
The Ivorian also said he was better than brother Yaya at fasting when they were younger, even if the former Barcelona man was considering the more gifted footballer.
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Toure is on Brendan Rodgers' Leicester City coaching staff and there was a special moment last year when Wesley Fofana broke his fast during the 34th minute of the Foxes' win over Crystal Palace.
In a wholesome statement, the defender thanked the Premier League, Palace and Vicente Guaita for allowing him to break his fast.
On Twitter, he wrote: "Just wanted to thank the Premier League as well as Crystal Palace, Vicente Guaita all [sic] the Foxes for allowing me to break my fast tonight in the middle of the game. That's what makes football wonderful."
The week before, Rodgers had substituted Fofana so he could break his fast against West Brom and showered him with praise for his performance while not eating or drinking.
Featured Image Credit: Image: Sky Sports & Kolo ToureTopics: Leicester City
