Former Ivory Coast international Yaya Toure has made history by becoming the first African coach to lead a club into the UEFA Champions League league phase.
Toure achieved the feat after guiding Slovak champions Slovan Bratislava past Slovenian side NK Celje in the final qualifying round.
Slovan secured a 2-1 victory after extra time in the second leg on Wednesday to progress 3-2 on aggregate and earn a place among the 36 teams in the Champions League league phase.
The achievement comes just months into Toure’s first senior managerial role, having been appointed Slovan’s head coach in June.
The former Barcelona and Manchester City midfielder has guided the Slovak club through three qualifying rounds, overcoming Georgia’s Saburtalo, Sweden’s Mjallby and Celje.
Cristian Martinez scored in the 100th minute to give Slovan the decisive goal and seal their place in the competition.
Toure’s achievement surpasses the milestone set by Nigerian coach Ndubuisi Egbo, who guided Albanian club KF Tirana into the Champions League qualifying rounds in 2020 but did not reach the league phase.
A Champions League winner with Barcelona in 2009, Toure will now experience the competition from the dugout, with Slovan set to face defending champions Paris Saint-Germain in their opening league-phase fixture on Wednesday.
The encounter will mark an immediate return to Europe’s elite competition for Toure, who lifted the trophy as a player and will now begin a new chapter as a history-making African coach.
