Ex-Manchester City star Yaya Touré has completed a surprising move to China League One side Qingdao Huanghai.
The Ivorian veteran, 36, had his contract terminated at Olympiacos last year and questions were raised over his future in football.
But the former Barcelona and Monaco midfielder will now be heading to China after penning a deal with Qingdao Huanghai.
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Touré's agent, Dimitri Seluk, claimed in May that the former Ivory Coast international would retire from football.
"Yaya has decided to end his career as a champion," the 55-year-old Russian admitted at the time.
"The farewell match which Manchester City gave him was, in principle, the real end of his playing career, not only in that team, but in general."
But Touré will be heavily criticised for his move after he previously said that he would be furious if he went to China.
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"I always say that if I went to China I would end up feeling angry," the four-time African Footballer of the Year said in 2017.
"Do you play football because you love football -- or do you play because you want to make money?"
Touré was best known for his eight-year spell at City and won three Premier League titles and one FA Cup during his time in Manchester.
And it would seem that Touré is putting his coaching ambitions on hold after signing for Qingdao Huanghai.
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The Ivory Coast legend told BBC Sport in April that he had
no plans of retiring and that he would be open to playing in the Middle East, US or Asia.
"No-one can stop me from playing football, I just decided to take an important time off for myself and it is very important to carefully weigh the options," he explained at the time.
"It's not the end or retirement from the game because I believe I can still play on for another two or three years."
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Should Touré have entered coaching instead of moving to Qingdao Huanghai?
Let us know in the comments.
Featured Image Credit: Qingdao HuanghaiTopics: Manchester City, Football News, Football, Etihad, Premier League, Yaya Toure