Yaya Toure Misses AFCON at Home in Ivory Coast, Enjoys Success With Saudi Arabia in Asian Cup

• Yaya Toure is currently in Qatar where Saudi Arabia are competing in the Asian Cup
• Toure serves as the assistant manager of the side and works under Roberto Mancini
• Saudi Arabia came from a goal down to beat Oman in their opening game of the cup

AFCON 2023 has attracted a host of African legends to the Ivory Coast, but there's one notable name missing.

Former Ivory Coast captain, Yaya Toure is currently in Qatar for the Asian Cup, but his heart is still with his people back home.

Toure captained the side in the 2015 edition, the last time they lifted the AFCON trophy. Now currently in Qatar, Toure couldn't personally cheer the side on but is still sending love back home.

Why Toure won't be in Ivory Coast

Currently serving as the assistant manager to the Saudi Arabian national team, Toure is with the side at the Asian Cup.

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As noted by Sports Illustrated, the former Barcelona player took on the post in November 2023 and works under Roberto Mancini, a former Manchester City boss.

Toure tastes some success with Saudi

While he hasn't been long with the team, Toure has already experienced some success with the side.

They won two of their World Cup qualifying games and followed that up with a hard-fought victory in their opening game of the Asian Cup.

The Saudis took on Oman in their first game of the tournament and, despite conceding first, went on to win the game 2-1.

The turning point was when Abdulrahman Ghareeb scored a brilliant goal to level the game. He dribbled past four defenders before slotting the ball into the back of the net.

Toure couldn't hide his excitement in the dugout as he watched the goal, and a video of his reaction has since started doing the rounds on social media.

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Yaya Toure names favourite for AFCON title

Meanwhile, Ivory Coast legend Yaya Toure has picked his favourites to win the Africa Cup of Nations title this year.

The former Manchester City star has not picked his home nation but instead chose Senegal and one other nation.

Toure captained Ivory Coast in 2015 when they lifted the trophy for the last time, Sports Brief has also reported.