KOCHI: “Early hunter”. One of the headlines from a Gabonese newspaper during the U-17 Africa Cup of Nations describing Djibril Fandje Toure.
That was an apt description for the boy from Guinea, who had just entered his teenage and also become the heartthrob of his nation after guiding them to the continental event’s semifinal. Toure had struck six goals and won the Golden Boot.
When Guinea arrived in India for the U-17 World Cup, the 14-year-old was already under the lens of some of the big European clubs.
His pace, technical supremacy, spatial awareness, and dribbling skills were already the talk of the town. If the scouts had any little doubt left regarding his utility in stadiums outside his comfort zone, all were dispelled by his outings against Costa Rica and Iran.
Toure struck one in each clash and could've easily added a few more. Against the gritty Germans, he looked off-colour in the first half but conjured up magic in the second, where he came close to scoring on a couple of occasions. The nearest chance was in the 82nd minute, when he had the goalkeeper in a tangle from a tight angle.
Having grown up idolising Cristiano Ronaldo, Toure would have felt extreme contentment had that effort yielded a result. “It was because of Cristiano that I started playing football. I would have liked to see that shot going into the goal,” Toure said.
Guinea as a team doesn’t boast of many good players like him, but Toure felt that he could've done better in India. “When I came here, I was rated very highly. I was labelled as a star player. But things didn't go the way I wished. That's football. That's how it is.”
On the periphery, Toure comes across as a soft-spoken boy, comfortable while being away from the limelight. But in reality, Toure is more mature than his age and never shies away from speaking his mind. There are even rumours that he spurned the offers of an EPL club because he wanted to start in Bernabeu.
“Real Madrid,” he stated after being asked about his favourite team.
“We couldn't play well here. But the team is set and we will be hoping to make a statement when we host the African Nations Championship in 2023,” said Guinea coach Souleymane Camara after their ouster from the event. By then Toure will be 21, and ready for the real hunt.