Toure so determined to establish legacy of success

Yaya Toure is setting his sights on sustained success after firing Manchester City to the brink of a first league title in 44 years.

The Ivory Coast international’s double edged City past Newcastle on a key afternoon on Tyneside to leave them needing to beat struggling QPR at home next Sunday to end their long wait. A first ever Premier League success on top of last season’s FA Cup final triumph would represent a creditable return on owner Sheikh Mansour’s sizeable investment in the club and justify Toure’s own decision to join his revolution.

The 28-year-old said: “Always I have said this club can go far, this club can win something.

“Khaldoon [Al Mubarak, City chairman] and Mansour are doing incredibly well. They have signed big players and they want to make this club a great club, one of the best clubs in Europe, and they are going the right way.

“Last year, we won the FA Cup and we have to continue like that and next week try to win the game against QPR.

“We know it’s going to be tough, but I believe in this team, I believe in the players we have. We have some fantastic players.

“I have always said I came to this club to make history even if some people said I came for different things.

“I am keeping going to tell them I came to this club to make history, and that is my first objective, to help make the club into a successful football club.”

The mathematics for next weekend are straightforward: City simply need to match United’s result at Sunderland to lift the title with the two sides locked together on 86 points, but Roberto Mancini’s men enjoying a superior goal difference by eight.

However, any slip-up could allow their arch-rivals back into the race, and that is something Toure and his team-mates are determined will not happen.

He said: “Forty-four years is unbelievable — it is too many years and for the fans and the club, it is nice to take three points here.

“We have one game at home against QPR. That’s going to be tough too, but we have one match left to play at home and we have to deliver.”

Meanwhile Manchester United skipper Patrice Evra has warned the club’s army of critics next week will not mark the “end of an empire” even if they relinquish the title to City.

Considering Alex Ferguson’s men established an eight-point lead five games ago, it is a sorry state of affairs that has already led to intense scrutiny of the merits of United’s current group of players.

Evra is not convinced a major overhaul is required.

“I know that if we don’t win the league, then a lot of people will say this is the end of the empire and ask how we will survive,” said the France full-back.

“But there is a lot of talent at this club.

“We’ve had to deal with a lot through injuries and losing experienced players last summer and it’s never easy to find a solution immediately.”