Thu, 28 Oct, 2021
Kuala Lumpur: AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa has extended his condolences to the family and friends of Safa SC striker Ibrahim Toure, who passed away at the age of 28, after losing his fight against cancer.
Ibrahim, the younger brother of Cote d'Ivoire internationals Yaya and Kolo Toure, was establishing himself as a key figure for Lebanese side Safa, who he joined in 2013 after three years in Egypt, scoring six times in ten matches before he went to England for treatment.
Born in Bouake in 1985, Toure began his senior career at Ivorian side ASEC Mimosas before moving to Ukraine in 2003 where he spent three years at Metalurh Donetsk.
A move to France followed and after a season with Nice, Toure (pictured during his time with the Ligue 1 side) had his first spell in Asian football when he joined Syria's Al Ittihad for the 2009/10 season. He left the Aleppo outfit but stayed in Arab football, joining Makassa in Egypt for the Fayoum-based club's first ever season in the Egyptian premier league following their promotion for the second division.
Shaikh Salman said he was saddened at the untimely death of Ibrahim and the passing away of a young footballer in the prime of his life and added that the thoughts and prayers of the AFC and the Asian football fraternity are with the Toure family and their loved ones during their time of grief.
Photo: AFP