Yaya Touré convinces Franck Kessie to move to Barcelona

He played a key role. Former Barcelona star Yaya Touré was crucial in persuading Franck Kessie to move to the Catalan capital. Barcelona have already confirmed his arrival as a free agent from AC Milan.

The Ivory Coast international has been a long-term target for the blaugranas and has signed a four-year deal at Camp Nou with a €500 million buy-out clause. The 25-year-old midfielder is determined to fight for a place in Xavi’s line-up immediately.

“I’m not afraid of the job. It’s something natural for me. I earn a lot of money not to sweat on the pitch. There are people in Africa who walk 30 kilometres every morning to get a piece of bread,” said Franck Kessie.

His statement is definitely a big boost for Xavi and he can also thank his old teammate. Yaya Touré is, after all, a close friend of Kessie’s. The former Barcelona player has told him that a move to this club is an ideal career move for him.

“During the negotiations with Barcelona, we talked for days. He wanted to see what he could find there. Milan offered him a new contract, it’s also a great club, but I told him not to doubt,” Yaya Touré revealed in an interview with Marca newspaper.

the 39-year-old former Olympiacos or Manchester City player knows that his younger compatriot will have to play well from the start and have a good attitude. “Barcelona is also a beautiful city, but I told him not to go out too much in the evening, to be careful [laughs] He has to concentrate on the games because he will be under constant scrutiny,” Yaya Touré continued.

Kessie is a physically strong midfielder who can still improve in many aspects of his game. If he confirms his play from AC Milan, he will be a great transfer for Barcelona.

At the same time, however, he will have to be ready for a lot of competition. “There will be two or three players fighting for the starting line-up. I will be like an older brother to him, he listens to me,” Touré added.

Kessie is expected to join the Barcelona squad for pre-season training in the coming days before they embark on a tour of the United States together later this month.

Source: Marca