Kolo Toure will decide his playing fate in the near future, but he has a clear plan for life after retirement.
Toure, 33, told the Liverpool Echo on Monday that he hasn’t decided whether to remain at Liverpool beyond this summer. Toure will become a free agent after the 2014-15 season, and Liverpool reportedly will offer him a one-year contract this week.
The veteran defender now is contemplating spending another season at Anfield as a squad player or going elsewhere in search of more playing time, as his career nears its end.
“My agent is talking to the club, so we will see in a few days,” Toure said. “The club have to think, and I have to think as well. It is a decision, and that is why I need to think very hard and then take a decision and stick with it.
“It is very important to know what you are facing. Whether you are going to be playing or not. I need to do the right thing for me and my family.”
However, Toure already is setting the stage for his second career. The Ivorian is taking coaching courses in his spare time. He hopes to become both a manger and an example to other aspiring African tacticians one day, the Liverpool Echo reported Tuesday.
“It is an ambition of mine to be a manager,” Toure said. “I am doing my UEFA B badge right now, but it takes time. I am focused on my game because I want to stay playing football for a few years.
“As an African, we need to have more African coaches because we need to take that responsibility.
Toure hopes the knowledge and experience he accumulated at clubs such as Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool will help him thrive in the dugout — be it in Europe, Africa or elsewhere.
“When you play at this level for big clubs, you need to show that,” Toure said. “Where? Maybe here, maybe back in Africa, but I need to do something in football because that is what I love.
“I’ve learned so much from all the managers I’ve worked with over the course of my career. They’ve all said they thought I’d be a manager one day.”
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@LivEchoLFC
