Yaya Touré hails Nigeria as AFCON’s standout side after entertaining campaign

Former Manchester City and Ivory Coast midfielder Yaya Touré has described the Super Eagles of Nigeria as the most impressive team at the recently concluded Africa Cup of Nations, Sport360NG reports.

Nigeria enjoyed an eye-catching run under coach Eric Chelle, going unbeaten through the tournament until a dramatic semi-final defeat by hosts Morocco on penalties after a 2-2 draw. The Super Eagles scored 14 goals and conceded just four before securing third place with a penalty shootout victory over Egypt.

Speaking to Bleacher Report Football on Monday, Touré, a four-time African Footballer of the Year, also praised Algeria and Morocco for their tactical discipline and overall performances at the tournament.

“I’ve been watching AFCON and I’ve been there as well,” Touré said. “I was impressed with Algeria, unfortunately they were eliminated by Nigeria. Morocco, under their manager, were very pragmatic, very direct and strong on the counter-attack.”

However, the former Barcelona midfielder reserved his highest praise for Nigeria, highlighting their attacking approach and consistency throughout the competition.

“I was really impressed with Nigeria,” he added. “They played very good football. The statistics show it, they scored more goals than usual, played with full attack and real intensity. For me, Nigeria were the most impressive team. The way they played, the goals they scored, the quality of their players, they produced some wonderful performances before being eliminated by Morocco.”

Touré also spoke positively about DR Congo and his native Ivory Coast, while acknowledging their relative inexperience.

“Congo were also good, I liked what I saw from them before they went out to Algeria,” he said. “Ivory Coast are a young team, sometimes a bit naive, but that’s part of football and part of learning.”