In his latest press conference, Pep Guardiola confirmed that club legend Yaya Toure will be leaving Manchester City at the end of the season.
In a stint in which he lifted two, soon to be three, 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 Paul Merson doing the rounds again.
Merson with another terrible shout? Surely not I hear you ask.
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Back in 2010, the pundit 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.
He then 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.
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No seriously, he said this:
It would be fair to say that this is another instance where Merson was a bit wrong with his predictions, wouldn't it?
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.
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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.
He will surely go down as one of the Premier League's greatest midfielders.
Thoughts? Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Manchester City, Football News, Football, Paul Merson, Yaya Toure
