Manchester City: Yaya Toure birthday tweet 'a joke', says agent
By Chris BevanBBC Sport
Yaya Toure's agent says Manchester City's attempt to mark the midfielder's birthday with a tweet was "a joke".
City gave Toure a birthday cake as they flew to Abu Dhabi and tweeted their congratulations after he turned 31.
But Dimitri Seluk says Toure is "very upset" that the club's owners failed to acknowledge him personally and says he may leave over their lack of respect.
"None of them shook his hand on his birthday. It's really sick you know," Seluk told BBC Sport.
However, City feel there is no need to be alarmed by Seluk's claims.
Seluk says Toure did not expect a present after turning 31 on 13 May but was unhappy at being ignored by the club's wealthy owners when the squad arrived in the United Arab Emirates last week to celebrate their Premier League title triumph.
"He got a cake but when it was Roberto Carlos's birthday, the president of Anzhi gave him a Bugatti," Seluk added.
"I don't expect City to present Yaya with a Bugatti, we only asked that they shook his hand and said 'we congratulate you'. It is the minimum they must do when it is his birthday and the squad is all together.
"It is an important human relationship to shake hands and say 'happy birthday' but nobody did it to Yaya. It shows they don't care about him.
"I hear one newspaper has written that City congratulated him from Twitter but this is a joke. It is better they don't put anything on Twitter if they are not saying anything to him.
"The club's owners ate a 100kg cake after winning the Premier League this season but when they and the players were all together, none of them shook his hand on his birthday."
Toure signed a four-year contract with City last summer but Seluk, who has represented Toure since soon after he moved to Europe to play for Beveren in 2001, says he could leave if they continue to "disrespect" him.
Seluk enjoys a close relationship with the Ivory Coast international, who named his second child after his advisor.
The Ukrainian added: "If they don't respect him, then easy - Yaya will leave. No problem."
