Kolo Toure Lands First Managerial Role With Wigan Athletic

This is Toure's first senior role in management but he has worked as an assistant at both Celtic and Leicester City under his former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers.

Toure will come in as a replacement for Leam Richardson, who was sacked earlier this month, with Wigan inside the bottom three of the Championship table.

The 41-year-old will look to lean on the experiences of playing under the likes of Arsene Wenger, Roberto Mancini and Rodgers.

Toure was part of Arsenal's Invincibles side who won the Premier League title unbeaten in the 2003/2004 season.

He won another title with Man City in 2012 and also helped Ivory Coast win the Africa Cup of Nations in 2015.

After opting for Toure, Wigan chief executive Malachy Brannigan said: "We are delighted that Kolo has become the new manager of Wigan Athletic and the board are pleased that he is the man to take us forward.

"We received a high calibre of applicants for the manager's job in recent weeks in a very thorough recruitment process as we looked to appoint the right person for the role.

"From the earliest of conversations we had with Kolo it was evident to us that he had instantly bought into the values of the club, with his enthusiasm, knowledge and immense desire to work and be part of Wigan Athletic shining throughout the process.

"There is no doubt that this appointment is an exciting one for the football club. Kolo is a manager who wants to play a positive brand of football and will strive every day to make the club stronger.

"The work starts immediately with the first-team squad as the season is just a couple of weeks away from restarting.

"As a board of directors, we look forward to working closely with Kolo and his team as the work begins collectively to establish Wigan Athletic as a Championship club.

"I am sure that all Latics supporters will get behind the appointment of Kolo Toure, give their backing to the staff and the players, as the football club begins a new, exciting era."