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Barcelona's Touré hints at United or Chelsea move

Tim Hanlon
Tuesday 17 November 2009 01:00 GMT
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(EPA)

Unsettled Barcelona midfielder Yaya Touré is ready to leave the Nou Camp, with Chelsea or Manchester United his favoured destination.

Touré attracted plenty of interest from Premier League clubs during the summer and, having now suffered under coach Pep Guardiola's rotation policy, the brother of Manchester City defender Kolo is ready to move on.

"We had offers from big clubs, I don't think there is a top side that does not want him, but Barça wanted him to stay. This season, though, he is not playing enough and he is not happy with the situation," said Touré's agent Dimitri Seluk. "He plays in the big games but this is not enough and he wants more consistency.

"Jose Mourinho was interested in him when he was at Chelsea, and Arsène Wenger wants him now at Arsenal but while they play good football they do not have enough money. Ferguson likes him at Manchester [United] and they along with Chelsea are the teams that interest Touré. He would not go to Manchester City because he is only considering really big teams and of course those that are in the Champions League. We ruled out City anyway because they tried to negotiate with us in a bad way using his brother.

"He likes English football and wants to be at a club which plays good football like Manchester United and Chelsea. There will be no movement in January as he will be playing in the African Nations Cup but he will make a decision probably in April or May."

Touré's agent was adamant that the player would not be leaving as any makeweight in a swap deal; rumours have linked him both to Manchester City and Arsenal, with Robinho and Cesc Fabregas respectively moving the other way. "I have heard about this speculation but this will never happen," said Seluk.

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