Yaya Touré: "I want to destroy the Pep myth" (France Football interview)

[kouroux]

He is a powerless average Joe in the context of the football world where as a player u can be racially abused in a football game and get sent off yourself for reacting.

Basically what I am saying is lets not act like football has shown it really is serious about tackling the issue

I completely disagree. He' s a 4 time African Player of the Year. If he raised such a serious issue while being under contract for his club, it would never raise the same level of skepticism.

 

[The BlackGaijin]

I completely disagree. He' s a 4 time African Player of the Year. If he raised such a serious issue while being under contract for his club, it would never raise the same level of skepticism.

Like I said it’s very difficult to prove racism and then you are blacklisted as a troublemaker. 4 time african player of the year against the Mighty Pep?? Do you honestly think he stood a chance?

 

[kouroux]

Like I said it’s very difficult to prove racism and then you are blacklisted as a troublemaker. 4 time african player of the year against the Mighty Pep?? Do you honestly think he stood a chance?

It's not a matter of whether he stood a chance or not, the guy was already put on the sidelines. If there ever was a player in the "ideal" situation to bring up those serious allegations, it was Yaya Touré. The man is about to retire from football at the highest level and this would have been painted as someone who has cojones to go against Pep while being a player of Man City.
Besides, when you look at the snippets, several situations are being talked about:
1) Not playing games because Pep is racist
2) Pep may have displayed racism towards him in situations that aren't directly related to football/game time (for instance in the locker room, in the parking lot ... Just example of situations).

2) Could still be true and completely valid and if so I hope he has evidence of it but 1) makes zero sense because at no point does he entertain the fact that he wasn't good enough anymore. The guy is so far up his own butt he thought only racism prevented him from playing. Boggles the mind

 

[ship50]

The statements made by Yaya's agent are going to hurt the player's credibility. Now I feel that since the player got a cold shoulder from the manager, the agent started this offensive. First, Yaya comes out with some claims and then the agents jumps in with more derogatory remarks.

If the manager is indeed a racist, then the player should have called it when he was in the team. Why didn't he take a stand for himself and the African players when he was earning a hefty salary? Surely, the manager didn't turned into a racist suddenly? Why now? Add to this his previous behaviour and no wonder people find it hard to believe him. And then this talk of revenge and playing for pittance just to teach the manager a lesson - this sounds so childish.

The only fact I see in Yaya and his agent's talk is that this manager has won trophies at top clubs with world class players. But we already know that.

 

[Cassidy]

It's not a matter of whether he stood a chance or not, the guy was already put on the sidelines. If there ever was a player in the "ideal" situation to bring up those serious allegations, it was Yaya Touré. The man is about to retire from football at the highest level and this would have been painted as someone who has cojones to go against Pep while being a player of Man City.
Besides, when you look at the snippets, several situations are being talked about:
1) Not playing games because Pep is racist
2) Pep may have displayed racism towards him in situations that aren't directly related to football/game time (for instance in the locker room, in the parking lot ... Just example of situations).

2) Could still be true and completely valid and if so I hope he has evidence of it but 1) makes zero sense because at no point does he entertain the fact that he wasn't good enough anymore. The guy is so far up his own butt he thought only racism prevented him from playing. Boggles the mind

It would have been painted as him being a trouble maker. The reason you are saying what your saying is because you already have the opinion he isnt being genuine. Also he clearly didnt think racism was the only reason if you read what he said. Again Im not saying he is right but to make out like it is simple for someone to go against the manager like that whilst still being at the club you are seriously underestimating the issue especially in the world of football, especially how previous issues have been dealt with.

 

[kouroux]

It would have been painted as him being a trouble maker. The reason you are saying what your saying is because you already have the opinion he isnt being genuine.

And so what ? Racism is a serious issue man, worth being labelled a troublemaker if you're 100% sure of being a victim is all I'm saying and no me thinking he isn't genuine has nothing to do with it. The same allegations from a much more reputable source would have made me skeptical if they were made in the same circumstances.
It's too easy to throw accusations like that, specially something so serious, it really annoys me.

 

[Thunderhead]

Eto, Ihenacho and now Toure have complained about how he treated them as human beings. We don’t know if he is racist... but if he is, most victims would be scared to come out because :

1. It is very hard to prove racism without video or Audio evidence.
2. Pep is in a position of power.

(Maybe now more will come out.So let’s not dismiss Yaya so quickly)
Just because he is plays beautiful football doesn’t mean he can’t be a racist cnut. He might be the Suarez or Terry of managers.

where did 'nacho complain about him as a human being?

 

[Cassidy]

And so what ? Racism is a serious issue man, worth being labelled a troublemaker if you're 100% sure of being a victim is all I'm saying and no me thinking he isn't genuine has nothing to do with it. The same allegations from a much more reputable source would have made me skeptical if they were made in the same circumstances.
It's too easy to throw accusations like that, specially something so serious, it really annoys me.

Worth beinf labelled a troublemaker yes. Worth being vilified and having your family harraased as racial abused by the public etc maybe not. There are always many things to consider in these cases. If you don’t know go and find out what happened to Aton Ferdinand (and his family) after the Terry incident

 

[The BlackGaijin]

where did 'nacho complain about him as a human being?

There was an article abt it after the move to Leicester quoting both Ihenacho and Agent . I will search for it.

 

[Cassidy]

where did 'nacho complain about him as a human being?

I think it was his agent

 

[kouroux]

Worth beinf labelled a troublemaker yes. Worth being vilified and having your family harraased as racial abused by the public etc maybe not. There are always many things to consider in these cases. If you don’t know go and find out what happened to Aton Ferdinand (and his family) after the Terry incident

I read about it and it was terrible. I don't think the risk is that lower now.
Reading the french quotes once more, it feels very much like a personal problem with Yaya Touré more than anything else.
He says his fitness tests were great during training sessions so not playing was down the only he could think of, his skin color. This is what I dislike about it, the shortcut to "discrimination by skin color" he makes

 

[Cassidy]

I read about it and it was terrible. I don't think the risk is that lower now.
Reading the french quotes once more, it feels very much like a personal problem with Yaya Touré more than anything else.
He says his fitness tests were great during training sessions so not playing was down the only he could think of, his skin color. This is what I dislike about it, the shortcut to "discrimination by skin color" he makes

Thats why I said your opinion about timing is tainted since you keep coming back to the fact you do not believe him. Im not even talking about Yaya specifically on this point, my point is it is incredibly difficult to speak out whilst playing for the manager who ever you are. Especially with how racism is dealt with within football. The will to win for a club has always been more important.

 

[kouroux]

Thats why I said your opinion about timing is tainted since you keep coming back to the fact you do not believe him. Im not even talking about Yaya specifically on this point, my point is it is incredibly difficult to speak out whilst playing for the manager who ever you are. Especially with how racism is dealt with within football. The will to win for a club has always been more important.

And like I said not believing him has nothing to do with that because I feel the mostly same way always regarding any prejudice done to people who are in situation to cope with the fallout of bringing up allegations. Of course it's not as simple as that because every situation is different but I feel it's always best to denounce early if you can.

 

[M18CTID]

Of course. And I'm not saying Toure's a saint or anything like that, but it just seems to me that most in here brush it off as 'Yaya being Yaya'. I don't think Guardiola is a racist, btw. But for the sake of all the people suffering from racism though, I just think the proper response would be to wait and see what comes out instead of just assuming Toure is making it up because he's a bit of a twat.

Don't see what me being a Liverpool fan has to do with this, but if you insist, that whole Suarez affair was a disaster.

You being a Liverpool fan wasn’t the issue. My point was that in the face of no supporting evidence so far, it’s a bit rich to call out those on here who cast doubt on Toure’s claims, whereas in the face of damning evidence plenty of your fellow Liverpool fans still tried to claim Suarez had done nothing wrong.

 

[Flexdegea]

Lot of pep fanbois feeling uneasy at the moment.

Defo a lot of lovers on the cafe

 

[Heista]

@MJJ



Try quoting the entire sentence - taking particular notice of the if/when part - rather than pasting in the convenient parts. Thanks.

''Gonna laugh so hard when/if Toure pulls some damning evidence out of the hat, revealing Pep for the fraudulent racist that he is''
This sentence is easy to interpret that you believe he is a fraudulent racist, but it just needs to be revealed.

If you say for instance:
''Gonna laugh so hard when/if Toure pulls some damning evidence out of the hat, revealing Pep to be a fraudulent racist''
Here you say it is an uncertainty, but a possibility, instead of a confirmation of your belief.

 

[Ramshock]

To be fair, you said...



Which basically equates to you presuming that Catalan people are never discriminatory toward ethnic minorities. And I just wanted to know why, as a genuine question.

I've heard/read a lot of first hand accounts from people that've traveled to Catalan areas and experienced racism/xenophobia that surprised them.

That said, maybe they were just 'playing the race card', which, in your opinion is an easy thing to do...

Catalans arent a race mate. Do you understand what race is?

 

[Canagel]

These claims by Yaya could be right or wrong. Nobody here can confirm or deny Pep to be a racist. However being someone who has played for Pep and known him since Barcelona I'm pretty sure he is in a better position than anyone to be entitled to that opinion.

 

[macheda14]

Catalans arent a race mate. Do you understand what race is?

Did Rhyme Animal say they were?

 

[Ramshock]

To be fair, you said...



Which basically equates to you presuming that Catalan people are never discriminatory toward ethnic minorities. And I just wanted to know why, as a genuine question.

I've heard/read a lot of first hand accounts from people that've traveled to Catalan areas and experienced racism/xenophobia that surprised them.

That said, maybe they were just 'playing the race card', which, in your opinion is an easy thing to do...

Did Rhyme Animal say they were?

Theres no race card being played.

 

[Camilo]

This is such a bollocks. Racism is a serious thing - what's he doing talking to a French football magazine for goodness sake? That's fecking terrible behaviour.

 

[Rhyme Animal]

Catalans arent a race mate. Do you understand what race is?

Literally no idea what you're gibbering on about, and I'm not sure you do either...

Can you just answer the question - why do you think Guardiola being Catalan would equal him not him not being racist/xenophobic?

 

[Ramshock]

Literally no idea what you're gibbering on about, and I'm not sure you do either...

Can you just answer the question - why do you think Guardiola being Catalan would equal him not him not being racist/xenophobic?

Im not gibbering on. There is nothing to suggest that Guardiola is racist or xenophobic regardless of him being Catalan or not. This whole conversation is hinging on a discarded player who has previous for being controversial and his past history with Pep.

Until other black players come out and say the same Im going to give the cnut the benefit of the doubt. As for your painting Catalans with a broad xenophobic stroke then thats up to you cupcake now run along and annoy someone else.

 

[Rhyme Animal]

Im not gibbering on. There is nothing to suggest that Guardiola is racist or xenophobic regardless of him being Catalan or not. This whole conversation is hinging on a discarded player who has previous for being controversial and his past history with Pep.

Until other black players come out and say the same Im going to give the cnut the benefit of the doubt. As for your painting Catalans with a broad xenophpbic stroke then thats up to you cupcake now run along and annoy someone else.

You're coming across really badly here, and are sounding borderline delusional and very bitter, on this topic at least.

I said the following in reaction to your statement that Guardiola being Catalan means that you doubt that he's racist...

Is there a reason why you believe Catalan people can't have prejudice against black people / ethnic minorities? Genuine question.

I've read a fair bit that would suggest otherwise. Which isn't to say that Catalan folk are racist en masse, but to say that they're not capable of racism seems pretty huge leap.

You've then proven incapable of answering the simple question as to why you made this bizarre statement, and have instead become belligerent and overly-emotional.

Then you've gone and dropped this clanger...

I dont know, the race card is easy to play unfortunately.

I'd suggest at this point that you're being purposely antagonistic, and probably have an unhealthy attitude on issues of racism.

I hope you overcome them, genuinely.

 

[ivaldo]

The whole thing is a mess, frankly. He goes from Pep being jealous of him, seeing him as a rival, to being baffled by why he wouldn’t play him, despite being largely shite, barely mobile and completely unsuited to Peps style of play. The only conclusion he can allow himself to believe is it’s because Pep is racist. Firstly disliking players of colour, and then specifically African players.

When you add this to his past outbursts, one of which he claims Africa is prejudice against Africans, is it any wonder people are disregarding it?

Why is it so acceptable for him to brazenly make such accusations? If there was a genuine problem, this wouldn’t be the way to deal with it.

 

[Random Task]

This thread has turned in to a shitshow.

 

[padr81]

Been away for a week so late to the party. Simply I don't believe Yaya, why?

His first statement was "I started to wonder if it was because of my colour" nothing to do with Africans. Now add to this the team featured, Kompany, Fernandinho, Mendy (when available), Sterling, Sane, Delph etc...
Then midway through he switches to Africans and says Pep will never field a team with 5 African born Africans, thats a big ask for any manager really isn't it? Has a single team in Europe done so?

This is Yaya trying to cause shit because well he' Yaya. How himself and his brother can be so different I'll never know.

In the above I read people saying he's done the same to Eto'o and Iheanacho, conveniently leaving out Zlatan, Hart, Deco, Ronaldinho. I think Pep doesn't like dealing with big personalities (Iheanacho aside, who lets face it can't get in the Leicester team too...) and immediately alienates them as soon as he walks in the door. Basically anyone who is likely to question him in the dressing room gets ignored, dropped and fecked out. Is it an ego thing? Maybe. Is it racism? Nope.

Keita who he signed also never mentioned his race in any interviews on why he didn't play.

Now that said if Yaya comes out with some proof and Pep is guilty of treating him different because he has an issue only with Africans if they are black, or only with black people if they are African, it's grounds for sacking. But I'm 99.9999999999999999999% confident, he won't and himself and Seluk will spend the next year talking shite again.

In reality, his legs have gone, he can't play our system (or arguably any system) and he's throwing round excuses because of his God complex.

 

[Jam]

I believe Yaya 100% and believe Pep should be sacked with immediate effect. He's a racist monster who needs to be removed from football.

Spoiler

I'd be shocked if it's true, but if it is 100% fabricated by Yaya because he was dropped then it's disgusting. Worse than Sol playing the race card.

It 'could' be true, but black players have always been a staple of Pep's teams so I'm leaning towards it being false.

 

[mitchmouse]

have we been linked with him yet? supposedly he only want £1 a week...

 

[Judge Red]

have we been linked with him yet? supposedly he only want £1 a week...

Sort of, but only because this former Manchester City player has said he’ll be happy to play for us or Liverpool for £1 per week.

So this is all a publicity stunt from a narcissist who can’t accept his career is over but, hey, we’d have those African shamans on our side...

 

[kaiser1]

When Yaya said he was denied a befitting send off by Pep, maybe my memory is hazy but I remember that in Citys last home game vs Brighton, Yaya was made captain(presumably by Pep), taken out in the 86th min(presumably by Pep) so he can get his ovation from the crowd.
So what send forth was he expecting beyond that?

Before Pep set foot in City, Yaya and his agent went on the offensive probably expecting that Pep will sell him off, Pep didnt , he kept him and even extended him for a year. Yaya waited till he was let go at the ripe age of 35 before going on his tirade. How many 35yr old are playing as outfield players in a top club? Beyond 30 some coaches wont even give beyond a 1yr contract

I will have a problem with Yayas claim if he doesn't have evidence to back it up as it trivializes a genuine societal issue. There are thousands of people suffering from racism daily but when the 35yr old millionaire midfielder starts throwing the word around carelessly probably to settle some scores.

 

[squiggle]

All I’ve read makes it sound like two fairly odd people who didn’t really get on. And then one called the other a racist, taking it to a whole other level.

Toure says

‘Last summer, when Pep shipped off Bony, who was a big signing a year and half earlier (32 million euros), I began asking questions.’

If that’s what he’s seeing as evidence of racism then I think it’s fair to be doubtful. Bony is a good player who was a little disappointing at Manchester City and whose style of playing didn’t fit Pep’s plans for the future. Pep also got rid of Joe Hart who, unlike Bony was a key member of the team at one point. So maybe he just wants players suited to his plans?

It’s not just a matter of waiting for some more evidence from Touré, it’s that what he’s already used to support his case doesn’t add up. Maybe he has very good reasons in his past to suspect prejudice but that doesn’t mean he’s right in this case.

 

[Bugs Bunny]

Been reading this thread with a great deal of interest what with being a City fan and it's good to see that the vast majority of posters realise that this is Yaya being Yaya (ie, a narcissist with an ego the size of the Ivory Coast). There's not a single shred of evidence that Pep is a racist or indeed has any inclination towards preferring players of any particular country, race or colour. Whereas, there is plenty of evidence from prior behaviour to indicate that Yaya is, to put it bluntly, a bit of a twat.

I do find some of the posts a bit strange, almost humorous indeed, in which some (very few, fortunately) posters are rightly stating that racism is abhorrent and needs rooting out wherever it occurs, then in the next breath it sounds as though they are hoping that Pep is proved to be a racist :-S

 

[Stacks]

These claims by Yaya could be right or wrong. Nobody here can confirm or deny Pep to be a racist. However being someone who has played for Pep and known him since Barcelona I'm pretty sure he is in a better position than anyone to be entitled to that opinion.

True, however he puts it down to his lack of playing which seems of bitterness. He does not intimate any further reasoning except "I am fit and not playing, must be my blackness, since I am the great Yaya and all teams need me". City had their best season ever without him.

 

[Stacks]

Kevin "De Aryan" Bruyne responds to claims that Grand Wizard Josep was racist towards teammate.

“I never saw something. It would be weird if the trainer was racist – with all the black guys in our team,” De Bruyne told BBC World Football.

“So I don’t know what Yaya said or if it’s wrongly written or exaggerated. When you don’t play there’s always something you try to find.”

De Bruyne added: “We had the best season ever, so in the end the coach took the right decision to play with the team who played a lot. This year the trainer probably thought he [Yaya] wasn’t doing enough, wasn’t fit enough. I’ve never seen something racist at the club, ever.”

Earlier on Tuesday Guardiola had refused to comment when asked to respond to the accusations. “I am not going to talk about the words of Yaya Touré,” he said.

 

[Kostur]

Kevin "De Aryan" Bruyne responds to claims that Grand Wizard Josep was racist towards teammate.

“I never saw something. It would be weird if the trainer was racist – with all the black guys in our team,” De Bruyne told BBC World Football.

“So I don’t know what Yaya said or if it’s wrongly written or exaggerated. When you don’t play there’s always something you try to find.”

De Bruyne added: “We had the best season ever, so in the end the coach took the right decision to play with the team who played a lot. This year the trainer probably thought he [Yaya] wasn’t doing enough, wasn’t fit enough. I’ve never seen something racist at the club, ever.”

Earlier on Tuesday Guardiola had refused to comment when asked to respond to the accusations. “I am not going to talk about the words of Yaya Touré,” he said.

Sickening shit. Change de Bruyne with Goebbels, Poop with Hitler et voila.

 

[SqualorVictoria]

Now that the whitest of the white people has spoken, who is accidentally also the manager's favorite, it really puts a stain on Pep's motives.

 

[Rob]

While in general I agree with your sentiment, at the end of the day this is just a football forum and we aren't going to be the judge, jury and executioner in the matter. We're just a bunch of people on the internet spewing opinions. At the minute all people have to go on are some vague claims by someone who has a history of being a bit of an idiot and drama queen when things don't go his way who's been ushered out the door by a manager that didn't want him.

I think it would be incredibly sad if people were put off standing up for themselves and calling out this sort of thing because some strangers on the internet didn't take the word of someone known for being a bit of a shitehawk as gospel simply because he claimed racism. Yaya has no one to blame but himself that people require a greater burden of proof from him. The same boat Sol Campbell has put himself in.

This forum in the past has been supportive of people standing up for themselves and outing this kind of thing. Yaya though, instead of going through any sort of proper channels while still at City or since leaving has gone to a newspaper to fling dirt and basically advertise for a new contract. He's put it out there in his usual dramatic fashion to be commented on and judged as the words of a man with previous for saying mad shit. The reaction to this isn't the norm for people outing racism, it's the norm for Yaya Toure making claims he hasn't backed up.

Yeah, I'm fully aware that Toure's a bit of a twat but speaking from experience (my students'), it can be difficult as feck to come out with these things. Nevermind if you read on a quite reasonable site like Redcafe that Toure's just an idiot and probably lying. Even if this is merely a football forum, it still has millions of viewers of all races. Even if Toure has made his own bed, I just think we should wait before passing judgment. Hopefully it turns out to be nothing.

 

[Rob]

You being a Liverpool fan wasn’t the issue. My point was that in the face of no supporting evidence so far, it’s a bit rich to call out those on here who cast doubt on Toure’s claims, whereas in the face of damning evidence plenty of your fellow Liverpool fans still tried to claim Suarez had done nothing wrong.

You make it sound like I'm to answer for millions of strangers only because I support the same football team. As I said, that whole affair was a disaster. But not really the issue here.

I'm not calling anyone out, btw. I just wish that people would wait and see what comes out before calling Toure a liar.

 

[M18CTID]

You make it sound like I'm to answer for millions of strangers only because I support the same football team. As I said, that whole affair was a disaster. But not really the issue here.

I'm not calling anyone out, btw. I just wish that people would wait and see what comes out before calling Toure a liar.

Of course you’re not responsible for what others say or do. I was just interested to know if you were as critical of those people as you have been of those who are calling bullshit on this on this forum. With Yaya’s track record of spitting his dummy out, it’s not surprising that people are sceptical. Of course, that doesn’t mean it’s definitely not true and if it turned out it was true, then Guardiola should be sacked on the spot. However, if you read the quotes it comes across as someone who is just throwing a lot of mud around and hoping some of it sticks. In any case, I’m not even sure there has been a clear accusation of racism from him but he’s certainly implying something along those lines.

From a personal point of view, I actually met Yaya last year. It was the day after the last game of the 2016/17 season and City were hosting a series of events across Manchester. I was part of a group of fans invited to the stadium to spring a surprise on him and despite all the shite spouted by him and his agent in the past, I have to say that I thought he spoke quite candidly and it had me wondering why he’d come out with all the other stuff such as the birthday cake rant (incidentally, I think the club actually gave him 2 birthday cakes so why he was moaning he didn’t get any is beyond me).