Kolo Toure ya yi aiki na mafi kyau daga cikin 'yan wasan ƙwallon ƙafa na zamaninsa — daga tsakiyar tsaron Arsenal na shahararrun Invincibles zuwa hauhawa Manchester City a ƙarƙashin Roberto Mancini, sannan zuwa Liverpool a farkon zamanin Jurgen Klopp. Wannan faɗin gogewa ya sa tawagar mafarkinsa ta zama mai cike da taurari ta gaske.

A ƙofar raga da a baya

Toure ya ba Jens Lehmann riga ta mai tsaron raga, yana kwatanta shi a matsayin mai tsaron raga wanda yake iya kama ƙwallo daga kwanon kusurwa da tsallake-tsallake, kuma mai ƙwarewar ƙwallon ƙafa da ƙafafunsa. "Yana da ƙarfin hali mai ƙarfi… amma Allah na, yana da hauka sosai!" Toure ya tuna da dariya. "Ba za ka so ya yi maka ƙiyayya ba, gaskata ni."

A matsayin baya na dama, Lauren ya fi Emmanuel Eboue — ko da yake Toure ya gaggauta yaba gudummawar Eboue ga ƙungiya da ƙasa. Sol Campbell ya haɗu da abokin haɗin gwiwarsa na Ivory Coast Vincent Kompany a tsakiyar tsaro, Toure yana jaddada ƙarfin Campbell a iska da balagar Kompany da jagorancin sa ko yana ɗan ƙarami a Manchester City. Ashley Cole ya kammala layin tsaro a gefen hagu, ana yabawa da ƙarfinsa da halitta ta harin sa ta ɗabi'a.

Kayan lu'u-lu'u a tsakiyar filin

Toure ya zaɓi tsarin lu'u-lu'u a tsakiya, da Steven Gerrard a matsayin tushe mai zurfi. "Ganin sa da faɗin ba da ƙwallon sa sun kasance masu kamala a can," in ji Toure game da tsohon kyaftin na Liverpool. Patrick Vieira ya mamaye ɗaya daga cikin matsayin tsakiya — an zaɓe shi sama da David Silva — Toure yana girmama ƙarfinsa, dabarunsa, da juriyarsa tsakanin ɓangaren masu cin ƙwallo biyu.

Gefen dama na lu'u-lu'u na ɗan'uwansa ne, Yaya Toure. "Idan ban zaɓi Yaya ba, zai tambaye ni dalilin!" Kolo ya ce yana dariya. Amma girmansa ya kasance na gaske: "Yaya kullum ya kasance ɗan wasa mafi kyau a tsakaninmu muna girma — na ji daɗi da hakan, ban damu ɗan'uwana ya fi ni ƙwarewa ba." Dennis Bergkamp ya zauna a kai lu'u-lu'u, an ba shi aikin ba wa wasa ƙwarewa da taimakawa da ƙwallo ga masu harbi biyu a gabansa.

Haɗin kai na harin da ke da hatsari

Thierry Henry ya jagoranci layin hare-hare tare da Didier Drogba — ko da yake Toure ya yarda cewa matsayin ɗan wasan harin na biyu ya kasance yana da gogayya da Luis Suarez da Sergio Aguero, waɗanda duka suka sami wurin su a teburin madadin. Dangane da Henry, Toure ya kasance takaitacce kuma mai yabon yawa kamar al'adarsa: "Saurinsa, ƙarfinsa, sha'awarsa ta nasara… shi ne al'amari na ban mamaki." Drogba ya cancanci wurinsa saboda ƙarfinsa na jiki, himmarsa, da iyawarsa ta bayarwa a mafi mahimman wasannin — halaye da Toure ya kwatanta su a matsayin na "ɗaukacin tarihin ƙwallon ƙafa na Afirka."

Wenger: mai horar da wanda ya canza komai

Babu muhawara kan matsayin mai horar da. Arsène Wenger shi ne zaɓin Toure kawai, kuma dalilan suna da zurfin zuciya. "Babu wanda ya gaskata ni kafin shi da David Dein," in ji Toure. "Ba abu mai sauƙi ba ne a ɗauki yaro daga Afirka, kai shi kai tsaye Ingila a saka shi cikin tawagar Arsenal bayan ƙasa da shekara ɗaya. Ina bin shi komai."

Cikakkiyar XI ta Kolo Toure (4-4-2 lu'u-lu'u): Jens Lehmann; Lauren, Sol Campbell, Vincent Kompany, Ashley Cole; Steven Gerrard, Patrick Vieira, Yaya Toure; Dennis Bergkamp; Thierry Henry, Didier Drogba. Madadin: Gael Clichy, Sergio Aguero, Luis Suarez. Mai horar da: Arsène Wenger.