Kolo Toure defends Serge Aurier, but claims he showed lack of maturity, must feel very bad

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Celtic’s Kolo Toure has commented on Tottenham new boy Serge Aurier.

Ivory Coast’s Serge Aurier takes part in a training session

Celtic coach Kolo Toure has told The Mirror that he thinks Tottenham defender Serge Aurier has shown ‘a lack of maturity’ over his career, and must feel bad about his misdemeanours.

Aurier, 24, left Paris Saint-Germain for Tottenham Hotspur in August, arriving as a replacement for Kyle Walker following his move to Manchester City earlier in the summer.

The Ivorian possesses many of the attributes that made Walker so important to Mauricio Pochettino’s style of play; the pace, energy, drive and desire to get to the byline to cross into the box are all attributes possessed by Aurier.

So far, Aurier has shown promise in a Spurs shirt, but he did also receive a red card for two quick bookings against West Ham United in his first Premier League start, meaning he still has some work to do.

Aurier’s quality on the pitch has rarely been in doubt, but the former Toulouse man has encountered a number of off-field issues in recent years, which were factors in PSG’s decision to sell him to Spurs.

Spurs boss Pochettino must now work to iron out some of those issues and allow Aurier to fulfil his potential as a player and as a person, and if he does, Tottenham have a major asset on their hands.

Now, Celtic’s technical assistant and Ivory Coast assistant manager Kolo Toure – formerly or Tottenham’s fierce rivals Arsenal – has offered his view on Ivorian international Aurier, telling The Mirror that he feels the defender has shown ‘a lack of maturity’ over the years, and must feel very bad about his off-field actions.

Toure added that he thinks Aurier is a ‘really good guy’, and should be cut some slack given that he was young and inexperienced, though that excuse won’t last long as the 24-year-old looks to establish himself under Pochettino.

“It’s a lack of maturity, quite simply,” said Toure. “I think he must feel very bad about it. But he got carried away and didn’t realise the consequences.”

“Serge is a really good guy, ask his team-mates. He’s young. We’ve all been like that. We’ve all been through that stage when we’re young, playing the hard guy,” he added.