Pep Guardiola called Yaya Toure "an exceptional player" following Manchester City's 2-1 Premier League win over Arsenal, but said he doesn't know if the midfielder will remain at the club next season.
Toure, 33, will become a free agent in the summer and could agree a move to a club outside England in January but he is expected to feature regularly for City following Ilkay Gundogan's season injury.
When asked if Toure would be offered an extended stay at City, Guardiola said: "I have no answer to that question. I know he finishes his contract. Now we have time to discuss that.
"What I am impressed by most is his huge quality. He looks like a boy. He played awesome. It is not in terms of when he has the ball but the personality.
"Yaya plays at that level because he is fit and focused. He is an exceptional player."
Toure was also non-committal on his plans but did put his return to the City team down to hard work and said that he had always been available for Guardiola to call upon if needed.
"I'm still here," Toure told SFR Sport. "I've always been here. Football is football. You have to know that sometimes in life you have to work hard and I think today is a good example.
"I talk about it a lot with my children. You have to stay positive, work hard. Nothing comes easily.
"As I often say, I'm happy to see my partners suffer on the pitch, to suffer with them. It's a lot more important for me. And I love my work, I love football."
Yaya Touré après #MCIARS : "On a contrôlé le match pendant 90 minutes. Arsenal n'a eu qu'une occasion en 1ère MT" #PLZone cc @FootAnglaisFR pic.twitter.com/L3exMGFhKA
- SFR Sport (@SFR_Sport) December 18, 2016
Toure also said City's victory over Arsenal, which put them second in the Premier League for at least 24 hours, was a deserved one.
"I think we controlled the game for 90 minutes, to tell you the truth. Arsenal had one chance in the first half. They took it well.
"It was a great pass from Sanchez for Walcott. After that, we were a bit unlucky. At the end we were a bit naive, the final pass wasn't clean. But I think it was a deserved win."