Wednesday 13 January 2016 08:48, UK
Kolo Toure has hailed Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger’s ability to transform average players into world class performers.
Wenger plucked Toure from the obscurity of the Ivorian Ligue 1 in 2002 and, after a successful trial, agreed to sign the defender on a long-term contract.
Toure made 326 appearances during his seven years with Arsenal and played a major role in the 2004 Invincibles team, along with a number of other players who were perceived as risks or unknowns when they signed for the club.
Thierry Henry, Robert Pires, Patrick Vieira and Freddie Ljungberg were just some of those players and Toure feels his and their development is down to the work of Wenger.
"Wenger is a top manager, he has shown that unbelievably," Toure told The Telegraph.
"The thing I like is this manager can make an average player one of the best players in the world. He did that with so many players.
"George Weah, Patrick Vieira was in Milan not playing a lot, Thierry Henry was at Juventus and he brought him here and made him one of the best players in the world.
"He did that with so many players, he made a lot of players into top players. He is a fantastic manager. He did that with me because I started from nowhere. He took me to the next level and I always respect him for that.
Toure, now of Liverpool, could face his former club at Anfield on Wednesday night in the Premier League after being left out of the squad that travelled to face Exeter City in the FA Cup third round last Friday night.
Arsenal have failed to win the title since 2004, but currently sit two points clear at the top of the table after 20 matches.
Toure feels the club's lack of success in the years that followed their title win in 2004 was due to the need to pay-off the stadium debt in relation to the move from Highbury to the Emirates Stadium.
"The new stadium," he added. "I am not inside any more but there has been a lot of change. A lot players left the club, guys like Patrick Vieira, leaders left the club and it was quite difficult, but this policy started when they started the new stadium.
"Everything changed. They needed to sell some players, cut the wage bill and that is all about it.
"I think they lost so many experienced players. Patrick Vieira was a leader, Robert Pires was a top player, Thierry Henry left and sometimes you need experience at the club and then a young player can learn, that is one of the things."
