Defender Kolo Toure has heaped praise on the first signing of the Jose Mourinho era at Manchester United, Ivory Coast international Eric Bailly.

The £30 million deal from Villarreal was the first transfer under the Portuguese manager, and former Liverpool centre-back Toure has spoke of his delight with the signing.

The 35-year-old spoke to Sport Ivoire and believes the signing can only be good news for his country because Bailly has signed for one of the “biggest clubs” in Europe.

Bailly has made 15 appearances for his country (Photo: Getty Images)
Bailly has made 15 appearances for his country (Photo: Getty Images)

Ivory Coast is honoured with transfer

Toure was released by Liverpool at the end of last season, and he is one of Ivory Coast’s greatest players, and he told the sports channel of the country’s delight.

The 22-year-old was an ever present for the Spanish side last season, and he is “proud of Eric” and “very happy” for his transfer to the Red Devils.

“He’s a calm guy who works a lot, and today, this work has been noticed by one of the biggest clubs in Europe. It’s the whole country who’d honoured,” said Toure.

Bailly was at Villarreal for just a season, making 35 appearances in all competitions, and he also has 15 caps for his country, whilst it appears that United have done a great bit of business.

United have reportedly made a bid for Julien Draxler (Photo: Getty Images)
United have reportedly made a bid for Julien Draxler (Photo: Getty Images)

Draxler a keen target for United

Another piece of business is about to take place under Mourinho as it has been reported that United have made a bid for Wolfsburg’s Julian Draxler.

The German side are wanting around £38.5m for one of their star players, but it is still unclear as to how much the Red Devils have offered for the 22-year-old.

However, Wolfsburg’s sporting director Klaus Allofs stated that they listen to offers for their players, except former Chelsea player Andre Schurrle and Draxler.

“We don’t want to sell them, we want to return to the Champions League with them,” he said.

United will be looking to make additions to their squad in all positions, and even though they managed to claim the FA Cup under former manager Louis van Gaal, more is expected of them after finishing fifth in the league.