Toure is one of five backroom staff that will follow Guardiola in leaving this summer Michael Regan/Getty Images
May 26, 2026 12:44 pm EDT Updated
Manchester City have confirmed that Kolo Toure will leave the club in one of five backroom staff exits following the departure of Pep Guardiola.
The Athletic reported this month that assistant coach Pep Lijnders, fitness coach Lorenzo Buenaventura and goalkeeper coach Xabi Mancisidor would be departing, and City confirmed their exits on Tuesday.
The club also announced that former Premier League winner Toure and Manel Estiarte, a long-term assistant of Guardiola at City, Bayern Munich and Barcelona, would also leave their roles.
Toure, 45, was appointed as an assistant coach to Guardiola in July after impressing during an initial temporary spell with the first team at the Club World Cup. He had previously spent a term as the Under-18 assistant coach, working alongside Oliver Reiss.
As a player, the former Ivory Coast international made 102 appearances for City, winning the Premier League in 2012 to add to his winners medal with Arsenal in 2004.
Buenaventura and Estiarte have supported Guardiola at Barcelona, Bayern Munich and City, while Lijnders joined ahead of the 2025-26 campaign and Toure stepped up to the first team last summer.
Former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca is expected to be appointed Guardiola’s successor. The Athletic reported last week that the Italian is likely to bring in Danny Walker as his assistant. Walker and Maresca worked together at City previously before joining up again at Leicester City and Chelsea.
City announced Guardiola’s exit last week, after six Premier League titles, three FA Cups, five League Cups, a Club World Cup and a Champions League, the latter capping their 2022-23 treble.
City finished the 2025-26 season second, seven points behind champions Arsenal.
May 26, 2026
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