With so many of the Blues’ current squad citing Vieira as something of a hero, the French midfielder is happy to welcome another member of his fan club in the shape of Yaya Toure.
“It’s terrific and very flattering when people say that you’ve been some kind of influence on them,” he smiled.
“Yaya is one of the best midfielders in the world and for him to come to City shows the kind of ambition this club has.
“We want to win trophies and I think we’ll do it, especially with players like Yaya and Aleksandar Kolarov who is another great player. I’ve played against him a few times in Italy and he is great acquisition.
We also have Jerome Boateng and a World Cup winner in David Silva so I think it’s going be a very exciting season for us as a team and particularly for our supporters
...Patrick Vieira
Vieira is feeling sharp and focused ahead of tonight’s game with Borussia Dortmund and hoping to take some part in the Blues’ penultimate pre-season friendly.
“I’m really looking forward to tonight’s game,” he said. “I’ve played here before with Arsenal in the Champions League and I think this is one of the most impressive stadiums in Europe.
“I think I’m getting somewhere near to peak fitness. It is important for me is not to miss any training sessions because I want to start this season in the form I ended the last one.”
