Arsenal have reportedly handed a trial to young 17-year-old phenom Dantouma Toure and are in contention to sign him up in January.
According to football journalist Brian Sciaretta, as relayed by Mirror, Dantouma Toure is currently on trial at Arsenal. The youngster is officially a member of the Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC, but he is currently in Europe to showcase his talents to multiple European clubs.
Nicknamed “Yaya”, Toure trained with Rangers Glasgow recently and is currently at London Colney, completing a trial at Arsenal. One would imagine he would be keen on making an impression in North London as he looks to take the next step in his career.
A winger by trade, Dantouma Toure was born in Conakry, a city in Guinea. But he began his footballing journey in Players Academy in New Jersey in the United States. He then moved to NYRB academy in New York, playing in the lower tier of American football with the club’s reserve side.
The 17-year-old’s big break came in March when he joined Colorado Rapids. He even made his professional debut earlier in June, featuring as a substitute against San Jose Earthquakes. However, the youngster has since played in the lower leagues and is now doing off-season trials elsewhere to earn himself a move to Europe.
I heard Colorado Rapids homegrown winger Dantouma Toure, 17, is doing offseason training with a bunch of European teams. Was recently at Rangers, now training with Arsenal. Born in Guinea, Toure has played for USYNT's in the past
— Brian Sciaretta (@BrianSciaretta) December 7, 2021
The former NYRB talent made an impression during his earlier trial at Rangers, leading to an opportunity at Arsenal. But it remains unclear whether the Gunners have any intention of securing his services in case he does continue to make an impact in Europe.
Mikel Arteta’s team has had no shortage of young talents in recent years. The likes of Emile Smith Rowe, Bukayo Saka and Ainsley Maitland-Niles all hail from the club’s youth academy, and one would imagine the club would not hesitate to further strengthen their options in the youth department if given the opportunity.
Hence, it will be interesting to see how Dantouma Toure performs during his trial at London Colney. He will certainly be keen on earning himself a move to North London, although the report from Mirror suggests that Colorado won’t be all too keen on losing their prized asset in January.
