Toure bracing for ´massive´ test

Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure says Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund is a must-win match.

The energetic Ivorian revealed that last season’s campaign – in which the Premier League champions failed to qualify from the group stages – was a ‘disaster’ for the club.

And despite disappointment in the opening game this year, which they lost 3-2 to Real Madrid, the 29-year-old former Barcelona player believes his side can follow in the footsteps of rivals Manchester United and Chelsea and win the European crown this season.

“Hopefully it is going to be a massive game for us. Borussia Dortmund are a fantastic team. They work very hard in attack and defence and we know it is going to be tough and we have to deliver,” he told reporters.

“Our last campaign was a disaster. We want to change that. Look at our rivals, Chelsea and Manchester United; they have appeared in a final and this year I hope we can go far and even win it.

“The first year was quite hard. This can be massive for us to get to the second round. We know we are in a tough group and we have to get a good result.”

City find themselves in Group G against a trio of domestic champions in Jose Mourinho’s Madrid, Ajax and Borussia Dortmund. However, Toure is eager to please the home fans by beating the Germans on Wednesday evening.

“In our life we know what we have to do but we understand the position we are in because we lost in Madrid,” Toure said.

“Now we are playing the first game in the Champions League at home and we want to show our fans what we can do and produce a good result. With a team like this we can go very far in the competition.”