Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Toure was named 2011 CAF Footballer of the Year Thursday just 24 hours after helping Manchester City defeat Stoke City 3-0 and stay top of the English Premier League table. Toure, a physically imposing 28-year-old younger brother of City defender Kolo, finished ahead of Ghana and Marseille midfielder Andre Ayew and Mali and Barcelona midfielder Seydou Keita in a vote among Africa-based national coaches.
Title holder and Cameroon and Anzhi Makhachkala striker Samuel Eto'o was eliminated from the race to be crowned the best footballer on the continent Wednesday along with Senegal and Lille striker Moussa Sow. Toure has been a key figure in the rise of Manchester City from Premier League also-rans to title contenders and FA Cup winners with the Ivorian scoring the goals that beat Manchester United in the semi-finals and Stoke City in the final.
He was also a pivotal figure as Ivory Coast finished the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers as the only country with a perfect record having defeated Rwanda, Burundi and Benin home and away. Toure began his professional career 10 years ago with Belgian outfit Beveren and also played in the Ukraine, Greece, France and for global giants Barcelona before moving to north-west England last year.
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