Football
ESPN staff 7y

Manchester City's Yaya Toure apologises for 'misunderstandings'

Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure has apologised for "misunderstandings" after being frozen out of the squad following statements made by his agent Dimitri Seluk.

Toure released a statement in which he said comments made in the past "do not represent my views on the club or the people that work there."

It followed reports that he had told Seluk to end his feud with City boss coach Pep Guardiola.

The statement, posted on his Facebook page, said: "I wish to apologise -- on behalf of myself and those who represent me -- to the management team and all those working at the club for the misunderstandings from the past.

"Those statements do not represent my views on the club or the people who work there.

"I have nothing but respect for Manchester City and only wish the best for the football club."

Toure, 33, helped City win two Premier League titles after joining from Barcelona in 2010, but has only made one appearance since Guardiola's appointment in the summer.

Seluk has been outspoken in his criticism of Guardiola and claimed he had a vendetta against him.

In September, the coach said Toure would not play for City again until he received an apology for comments made by Seluk.

The agent claimed Guardiola was "humiliating a great player" by not picking him and later said he was "allowing his ego to make decisions that aren't in the best interests of Manchester City."

But now Toure has told Seluk to end the row, leading the agent to say he wants to establish a "new relationship" in the hope his client can return to the City squad.

"I have spoken to Yaya in the last few days and he has asked me to make the peace with Pep," Seluk told The Mirror.

"I agreed with him that I had to do what I could to make the situation better, because Yaya and Manchester City have been caught in the crossfire.

"I am genuine in what I say. I don't think that Pep will ever love me, but the most important thing is that we try to forgive what has happened in the past and develop a new relationship.

"This is a genuine gesture. I hope Pep accepts that my hope is that we can start with a clean page."

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