Kelly, you both spent some truly incredible time at Manchester City and Barcelona. What was that period at Manchester City, in particular, like?
Yaya: To be honest, I think it’s something I’m very proud of. In the beginning, it was quite challenging. The fact that I was being asked more about my income than what I’m going to bring to the club by fans and the media. And so those few people as well will be sceptical about my arrival at City, because they were thinking it was not the right move to do, and I feel so delighted that I proved them wrong. I’m proud of the fact that I did what I should have done.
My second year at Barcelona, we won everything and I’ll never forget the Champions League final – playing in a different position. Some of my team-mates were telling me before the game that “You’re going to play Manchester United and there’s going to be Cristiano Ronaldo coming to you and [Wayne] Rooney is coming to you.”
I wanted to embrace the challenge. But inside, I was a little concerned, because it’s okay to play holding midfield. But a defender, any mistake can cost you a lot, right, and can stay in your brain for a long time. I’m most pleased that I have the chance to assist City in establishing itself as one of England’s elite clubs at the moment.
Kelly: When did the coaching journey begin then?
Yaya, I started to feel a little sluggish while watching TV at home. I didn’t take it that seriously in that moment because I want to have this kind of freedom – just relax because my body was hurt from a lot of difficult moments from games and injuries. As you can see, I aspired to spend that time relaxing and unwinding for perhaps a month or two. That was my plan at the beginning.
Kelly: What has changed? What happened?
Yaya: I started to be obnoxious after about two or three days. I was watching all the games and commenting on them. I was aware that La Liga and the Premier League would debut at eighteen, and I was aware that the French league would begin at seveneen. I was all the time, on the right time, watching TV. And I was asking, “What will I do?” And after that, I started the journey of thinking about building something suitable for me. I began the coaching journey by doing that. I started to do all the badges possible.
I’ve spent time at Tottenham’s academy, in Russia, Ukraine, and Saudi Arabia, where I spent time before recently. And it was something enjoyable. Not that easy, but I believe I had to do that. To be ready, because I hope one day people are going to watch me with my team as a coach.
Kelly, which coaches have had the biggest impact on you and the person you want to be as a manager?
Yaya: Frank Rijkaard and Roberto Mancini. It was impressive when I visited Barcelona during Rijkaard’s time because he would constantly say, “I don’t want you to go further [forward] because you play the deep midfielder role.” Xavi and Iniesta are in front of you, you can’t pass them to play the ball because you’re supposed to be behind them. Two skilled players are in that area, but I believe you can give the team more physically.
What he did, at some point – he called me. He wanted to meet me face-to-face, have a conversation, and perhaps watch a movie. I said: ‘ Why do I want to watch a movie with you gaffer?! ‘ We went to his private room after everyone had left, and he recorded all of our actions against Zaragoza on a video. I’ll never forget that. I told you not to do this, but look at that, he said in a small book.
From that day, when I left his office, I never talk again, ever – because it was like something new to me. He was like, “Yaya, Yaya, Yaya,” in the video game. I was like: ‘ What does this guy want from me? He calls me all the time. Why he don’t call Puyol, don’t call Alves or Abidal or Zambrotta. Why am I always? It was like he had something against me, but he was right. My mind has changed a lot since that time.
The second one was Mancini. You can tell by his dedication and passion how much he gets involved in the session he leads and the intensity of his performance.