Shaun Wright-Phillips has said that Yaya Toure is one of the most underrated players in Premier League history.
When asked to name a Mount Rushmore of Manchester City’s greatest players on CBS Sports Golazo, he opted for the Ivorian legend as his first pick and discussed how underrated he is.
It seems like those who played alongside the retired midfielder were huge fans of his unique talent.
Shaun Wright-Phillips says Yaya Toure is one of the most underrated players in Premier League history
Vincent Kompany once said he struggled to name even one attribute that the Sky Blues legend did not have in his locker.
Joleon Lescott claimed that the three-time Premier League winner is the “best player” he ever played with at the Etihad Stadium.
Now, Shaun Wright-Phillips has heaped praise on Yaya Toure and explained why he feels he is extremely underrated as far as Premier League players go.
“I think I said Yaya Toure. I was just saying to the guys obviously at the break, possibly, one of the most underrated players I’ve seen in the Premier League”, he said on CBS Sports Golazo.
“I think a lot of the City fans get it and a lot of the people that watched him at Barcelona understand it but if you didn’t see this player, I think you should look back and see what he did, and how many games he took by the scruff of the neck and just won them on his own, no matter the magnitude of the game, he was always ready to be that guy.”
Shaun Wright-Phillips also picked Yaya Toure as one of the two best players he ever played with at Manchester City in another chat with CBS Sports Golazo
“I think I’m going to say either Yaya Toure or David Silva. I would say out of those two.”
Wright-Phillips added, “Yaya was unbelievable. I remember playing against him before he came to City, it was a pre-season friendly at the Nou Camp and for whatever reason, Mark Hughes said I was playing [in] midfield and then I saw Yaya Toure and I was like, ‘Damn!’ Out of all days, it had to be today!”
“I just remember every time you tried to get close to the ball where you think he’s scanning, looking, whatever, he doesn’t know where the ball is, by the time you take two steps there, the ball’s gone. He was always that advanced.”
As far as his peaks go, there have not been many better than Yaya Toure
Shaun Wright-Phillips may have a point as some may genuinely not realise how exceptional a player Yaya Toure was.
But especially in his prime during the 2013/2014 season, there have not been many more dominant forces that the game has ever seen.
With 20 goals and nine assists to his name in the Premier League that campaign, Toure led City to their title triumph.
Yaya Toure ticked every possible box an attacking player could.
The four-time African Footballer of the Year’s end product was incredible, his ability to drive forward with the ball past his opponents was unlike what we may have ever seen from a midfielder while he still managed to control games from the middle of the park.
The variety of goals Yaya Toure during that season, from solo strikes to long-range screamers and free-kicks galore, he was truly a man possessed.
What is fascinating is that during that season, the decorated midfielder was operating as a No.8 instead of playing further forward and yet, he bossed proceedings in every conceivable way.
Not many players in the history of the game may have reached such standards, let alone in just the Premier League era.
