Arsenal 'waiting' for Adebayor - Touré
Posted Thursday, April 22, 2010 by theguardian.com
Emmanuel Adebayor 'needs more intelligence' at Arsenal, says Kolo Touré
Emmanuel Adebayor and Kolo Touré celebrate the former's goal against Arsenal last September in front of the visiting fans.
Emmanuel Adebayor, preparing for what promises to be a rancorous and volatile return to Arsenal on Saturday, has been told he "needs to show more intelligence" to prevent inciting problems with the supporters of his former club. The warning came from Manchester City's captain, Kolo Touré, another former Arsenal player, who has also felt the need to speak to the striker in private to set out what kind of behaviour is expected of him.
When the teams met at Eastlands in September Adebayor, City's £25m signing from last summer, reacted to hostile chants from Arsenal's fans by running almost the length of the pitch to celebrate scoring in front of the away end, prompting prolonged scenes of disorder.
"It will be really tough for him because of everything that happened," Touré said. "Their fans are waiting for this game but Ade is intelligent and I hope he will just be focusing on the game and trying to win. He needs to keep calm because he is a professional player. The last game was really difficult for him but he needs to show more intelligence this time, stay calm and not do anything because we all know that what he did last time was not the best reaction and, as his friend, I've told him that."
Adebayor was charged with improper conduct by the Football Association and later fined £25,000, with a suspended two-match ban. After the same match his former Arsenal colleague, Robin van Persie, accused him of a "mindless and malicious" stamping, and the FA agreed, punishing Adebayor with a three-game ban. "I think he will be really calm now," Touré continued. "It is really difficult, especially when you spend three years at a club and you leave in a bad way. But we are all professional."
"I've had a word with him and Patrick [Vieira] has had a word with him as well. The most important thing for him is to give everything for Man City.
"I have told him to calm down because, if we start to be emotional, that's when we can drop points. For us, the most important thing has to be to win the game."Adebayor recently retired from international football because he was still troubled by the terrorist attack on the Togo team bus before the Africa Cup of Nations, which killed three people. "He has been in a really difficult position a few times this season but he is a really strong boy, he is still scoring goals and we want him to do that on Saturday," Touré said. "He is still affected by what happened and when you go through that kind of situation you need time. He is getting better over time and if the game on Saturday goes well then he will make a big step."
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