Kolo Toure has urged £25million-rated forward Mario Balotelli to agree a deal at Manchester City.
Centre-back talks with forward about City move
Manchester City defender Kolo Toure has urged Inter Milan's £25million-rated forward Mario Balotelli to agree a deal at Eastlands.
The two clubs are understood to have been in discussions over a possible transfer for several weeks and it is reported that a conclusion could be reached over the weekend.
Toure spoilt Balotelli's Italy debut on Tuesday night as he scored the only goal in Ivory Coast's 1-0 friendly win at Upton Park.
And the centre-back has revealed that he spoke with the striker after the match in an attempt to convince him that he should move to England.
Bad-boy reputation
Toure said in the
Daily Star: "I spoke to him before the end of the match and afterwards. I just told him that we are waiting for him, that's it. Now we hope that the deal will happen."
The former Arsenal player is also in no doubt that Balotelli has all the attributes to be a success with City, despite his bad-boy reputation in Italy.
Toure said: "Mario's very strong, he's technically very good, he's fast. I think he's a player for the Premier League, definitely.
"His attitude is very good as well, he reminds me of Roy Keane and Patrick Vieira, these type of guys.
"They have a really strong mentality and, in the Premier League, we like those kind of players. He's got everything to be a top player in the Premier League."
