Kolo Toure completes move from Manchester City to Liverpool

Kolo Toure is officially a Liverpool player after finalising his move from Manchester City.

Toure agreed to join Liverpool shortly after the end of the season, but he could not complete his move until his contract at the Etihad Stadium expired.

He became a free agent on Sunday and the Ivorian wasted little time in finalising his move to Anfield, putting pen to paper on his new contract at the club’s Melwood training ground on Tuesday.

“This means a lot to me. Firstly, I’m joining one of the best clubs in England,” Toure told the club’s official website.

“When I left City it was important for me to stay in England because it’s the best league – and to join Liverpool is massive for me.

“I chose Liverpool because of the history and because of the spirit of the team and the people here.”

City’s failure to offer Toure a new contract left the 32-year-old pondering his future but he repeatedly stated his desire to remain in the Premier League and Brendan Rodgers pounced to fill the gap created by Jamie Carragher’s retirement.

Toure moved to the Premier League in 2002 when he joined Arsenal, making his debut against Liverpool in the Community Shield at the Millennium Stadium, and he went on to make over 200 appearances for the Gunners.

As well as two FA Cup medals, Toure won the Premier League title with the London club and was part of the team that reached the Champions League final.

He moved to City in the summer of 2009 and during his four years with the club, he won another Premier League title and FA Cup.

He is Liverpool’s fourth signing of the summer following the arrival of Luis Alberto, Iago Aspas and Simon Mignolet.