Yaya Toure Becomes First African Coach in Champions League

Yaya Toure, the former Ivory Coast international and current head coach of Slovan Bratislava, has made history by becoming the first African coach to guide a club into the UEFA Champions League league phase. This milestone was achieved on Wednesday when Slovan Bratislava defeated Slovenian side NK Celje 2-1 after extra time in the second leg of their final qualifying tie, resulting in a 3-2 aggregate victory.

Toure, who was appointed head coach in June, has successfully led the team through three qualifying rounds, including victories over Georgia’s Saburtalo and Sweden’s Mjallby. Cristian Martinez scored the decisive goal in the 100th minute of the match against Celje.

This achievement surpasses the previous record set by Nigerian coach Ndubuisi Egbo, who led KF Tirana into the Champions League qualifying rounds in 2020 but did not reach the main competition. Toure, who won the Champions League with Barcelona in 2009, will now experience the tournament from the touchline, with Slovan's first match in the league phase against defending champions Paris Saint-Germain scheduled for Wednesday.