Yaya Toure says he stayed at Manchester City this summer out of loyalty to Manuel Pellegrini.

The combatitive midfielder was linked with a move away from the Etihad after a difficult year for the Ivorian following the death of his brother Ibrahim in June 2014.

But Toure opted to stay at City in order to repay Pellegrini, who the midfielder says has been like a father.

In a book, ‘Pellegrini’s Methods’, Toure says: “I’ve stayed because of Manuel. He always talks to me, giving me some piece of advice. He has been aware of my life off the pitch.

“He has been like a father to me in difficult moments.

“I have never felt like that with another coach. Before this season, all the players had a talk and we promised the boss we would recover our level.

“We had to do it for him, for us and for the fans — we have to win important things this season.”