Samuel Eto'o

At 43 years old, Samuel Eto'o has this physical status:

Samuel Eto'o Fils (born 10 March 1981) is a Cameroonian retired professional footballer who played as a striker.

In his prime, Eto'o was regarded by pundits as one of the best strikers in the world, and he is regarded as one of the greatest African players of all time, winning the African Player of the Year a record four times: in 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2010. A precocious talent, Eto'o moved to Real Madrid as a 16 year old.

Due to competition in his position with more experienced players, he had several loan spells, before signing for Mallorca in 2000 where he scored 70 goals.

His impressive form saw him join Barcelona in 2004 where he scored 130 goals in five seasons and also became the record holder for the most number of appearances by an African player in La Liga.

Winning La Liga three times, he was a key member of the Barcelona attack, alongside Ronaldinho, that won the 2006 UEFA Champions League Final, with Eto'o scoring in the final, and was part of a front three of Lionel Messi and Thierry Henry that won the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final, with Eto'o again scoring in the final.

He is the second player in history to score in two UEFA Champions League finals.

At Barcelona, Eto'o came in third for the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2005 and was twice named in the FIFA FIFPro World XI, in 2005 and 2006. In 2010, he signed with Inter Milan, where he became the first player to win two European continental trebles following his back-to-back achievements with Barcelona and Inter.

He is the fourth player in Champions League history, after Marcel Desailly, Paulo Sousa, and Gerard Piqué, to have won the trophy two years in a row with different teams.

After brief spells with Anzhi Makhachkala, Chelsea, Everton, and Sampdoria, Eto'o found prolific form again in the Süper Lig with Antalyaspor having scored 44 goals in 76 league games.

In 2015, he received the Golden Foot Award. As a member of the Cameroon national team, Eto'o was a part of the squad that won the Gold Medal at the 2000 Olympics.

He also won the Africa Cup of Nations in 2000 and 2002.

Eto'o has participated in four World Cups and six Africa Cup of Nations.

He is the all-time leading scorer in the history of the Africa Cup of Nations, with 18 goals, and is Cameroon's all-time leading scorer and third most capped player, with 56 goals in 118 caps.

Eto'o announced his retirement from international football in August 2014.

Personal life

Eto'o is a native of Nkon, a suburb of Yaoundé. He made his first steps in the district of Mvog-Ada, one of the most deprived of the Cameroonian capital. He has two brothers who are also footballers: David and Étienne. Eto'o has four children: Maelle, Étienne, Siena and Lynn. He married his longtime sweetheart Georgette on 6 July 2007. Georgette is the mother of Siena and Lynn, who both live with her in Paris. On 17 October 2007, he earned his Spanish passport.

On 9 November 2020, Eto'o was involved in a car accident, when his 4×4 had a head-on collision with a bus. It was said that Eto'o was unhurt from the accident. The driver of the bus tried to escape the scene before being apprehended and taken to a police station.

Eto’o is a supporter of French club Paris Saint-Germain.

Eto'o experienced racial abuse in some away matches during his career. He is one of several high-profile contemporary players to have reacted to the abuse by threatening to leave the pitch and being outspoken in criticism of their experiences.

In February 2005, during an away match with Real Zaragoza, Eto'o was the subject of racist taunts by Zaragoza supporters, who began making monkey-like chants onto the pitch whenever he had possession of the ball. Referee Fernando Carmona Méndez, however, made no mention of the incidents in his match report, commenting only that the behavior of the crowd was "normal"; two of the abusers were caught and given five-month sporting-event bans after being identified to police by other spectators. Eto'o later declared that the punishment was insufficient and that La Romareda should have been closed for at least one year, but his manager Frank Rijkaard, of Surinamese origin, told him to concentrate on football and stop talking about the incident. Infuriated again by Zaragoza fans' racist chants the following season, however, Eto'o attempted to walk off the pitch in protest. His teammates intervened and convinced him to continue playing.

After experiencing regular racist abuse from sections of support in Spanish crowds, Eto'o stopped bringing family members to matches. He stated, "It is something that has affected me personally. I think players, leaders, and the media have to join forces so that no one feels looked down upon because of the colour of their skin. At this moment in time I prefer my children don't go to football matches. In the stands they have to listen to things that are difficult to explain to a child. It is better they aren't exposed to it."

On 17 October 2010, in a Serie A game against Cagliari, after just three minutes of play, the referee halted the match to give a warning to some Cagliari fans who were singing racist chants towards Eto'o. After play was resumed, the rest of the stadium chanted loudly in an attempt to drown out the racist chants in order to avoid the match being suspended. Inter went on to win 1–0 with an Eto'o goal in the 39th minute.

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Club career

Eto'o attended the Kadji Sports Academy in Cameroon in 1997, but he could only train with Real Madrid B because he was still a youth. Real Madrid B was relegated to Segunda División B, where non-EU players are not allowed, and as a result, he was loaned to second division Leganés for the 1997–98 season. He made 30 appearances for the club but only scored four goals, and he returned to Madrid after the 1998–99 season. He was loaned out to Espanyol in January 1999, but he made just one appearance for the team against Real Valladolid in Copa del Rey.

He stayed on loan with Mallorca's La Liga team for the next season, where he scored six goals in 19 games. Eto'o left Real Madrid at the end of the season, signing a long-term contract with Mallorca for a club record £4.4 million fee. He scored 11 goals in his second season and began to receive notice around the league. "I'm not sure if there is any other player in the world who will please the fans more at this moment," Mallorca President Mateo Alemany said of his style of play. "I like it here in Mallorca; I've always been keen, the fans are appreciative, and I have a contract that runs until 2007." Eto'o himself wrote about his meteoric rise: "I like it here. When he donated €30,000 in meals to traveling Mallorca supporters who participated in the Copa del Rey final against Recogniza de Huelva in 2003, he expressed the fans' appreciation. Mallorca won the match 3–0, with Eto'o scoring two late goals to seal the victory. Eto'o won in two straight away victories against his former club Real Madrid: the first, a 1-5 loss, and the Madrilenian team's only home loss since being unable to win the 2002-03 La Liga in La Liga. The second round of La Liga ended with a 2-3 result, effectively ending Real's back-to-back victories.

After lengthy, three-way talks with Mallorca and Madrid, Eto'o departed Mallorca as the club's all-time leading domestic league scorer (54 goals) when he signed for Barcelona in the summer of 2004 for a transfer fee of €24 million. Real Madrid President Florentino Pérez wanted to buy back the full transfer rights and loan him out once more, but the Barcelona contract was never lucrative enough to justify a sale. In addition, the team already had a full roster of three non-EU players.

In the season opener at Racing de Santander on August 29, Eto'o made his Barcelona debut. The team threwered "Madrid, cabrón, saluda al campeón" after Barcelona defeated the 2004-05 La Liga title, and the fans were harrassed, chanting, "Madrid, bastards, salute the champions." Eto'o €12,000 was fined by the Royal Spanish Football Federation for his remarks, for which he later regretted. He expressed regret and asked for restitution from Real Madrid, his first professional team. The Real Madrid fan club federation's president was unimpressed, but "this character is a natural performer, but there is a lot to be desired as a person." In June 2005, he began working in Barcelona under a new one.

Eto'o beat Valencia in the final matchday on May 20th, defeating them out on the 2013 Pichichi Trophy, which is given to the top scorer in La Liga, beating Athletic Bilbao. After the game, Eto'o was very kind to colleagues, saying, "It has been a team effort, but only one individual receives the award." "We've been working hard all season and now we've been rewarded for our just rewards."

During Barcelona's 2005-06 Champions League victory, Eto'o scored six goals. Arsenal goalkeeper Jens Lehmann was dismissed early for bringing down Eto'o just outside the penalty area, but the Catalans failed to capitalize on their one-man advantage until Eto'o scored the game-tying goal in the second half. Barcelona defeated the match 2–1, and Eto'o was named with the UEFA Best Forward of the Year award for his work in the European campaign.

Eto'o was also named in the third straight African Player of the Year award this season. "Above all, I dedicate this to all the children of Africa," the president said in his acceptance address. He was also named in his second straight FIFPro World XI and came in third, making him the second African footballer since Liberian footballer George Weah to be voted into the top three.

Eto'o's season got off to a rocky start in the United States as he ruptured the meniscus in his right knee against Werder Bremen on September 27. Ricard Pruna, a Barcelona team physician, originally expected that the illness would keep him out of action for two to three months. Eto'o's recovery time was extended to five months following the surgery, but he started training with Barcelona in early January 2007.

Eto'o refused to appear as a replacement in a league match against Racing de Santander on February 11, 2007. "He did not want to come on," Barcelona boss Frank Rijkaard said after the match, "I don't know why." Ronaldinho was critical of Eto's actions, saying that Eto'o was not placing the team first, but Eto'o rebutted the claim, saying that he didn't come on because he didn't have enough time to warm up properly. "These kind of things are usually just speculation, and don't come through to me," Eto'o said three months later. However, if it's true that I am a threat to my team, I would abandon them. However, I am content here, as I said. The press will write what they want." Following the remarks, Barcelona President Joan Laporta was quick to dismiss rumors of transfer involving Eto'o and Ronaldinho.

Eto'o was out indefinitely after aggravating a meniscus injury during a summer friendly against Inter Milan on August 28. He obtained Spanish citizenship on October 17th, during his recovery period. He was cleared to play again on December 4th and returned to Barcelona a week later in Barcelona's 2–1 league victory over Deportivo de La Corua.

In a match against Levante on February 24, Eto'o claimed his first league hat-trick. In 18 appearances for the season, he had scored 16 goals in 18 appearances. In a win over Almera on Sunday, he became the fastest hat-trick in club history after netting three times in 23 minutes. Eto'o scored four goals in Barcelona's game against Real Valladolid, which ended 6–0, just two games later. In a 3–0 road victory over Sevilla on November 29, 2008, he scored his 111th goal in all competitions, putting him in the top ten all-time goal scorers in the club's history.

In a 2–2 draw with Real Betis on February 14, 2009, he scored his 99th and 100th league goals for Barcelona. In a La Liga match against Real Valladolid, Eto'o scored his 30th goal of the 2008-09 season. Barcelona lost by 1–0, giving Barcelona a six-point lead over Real Madrid in the league. In a game that knocked Barcelona one point away from winning the 2008–09 La Liga championship, he scored against Villarreal. He scored 30 goals on the season and finished second in the Pichichi Trophy goalscorers list behind Atlético de Madrid's Diego Forlán.

Eto'o scored the first goal against Manchester United in the 2009 UEFA Champions League Final. Barcelona went on to win the final 2–0, completing the Treble. Lionel Messi's three brothers (38 goals), Eto'o (36 goals), and Thierry Henry (26 goals) scored exactly 100 goals in the club's historic treble year.

After Maxwell completed his transfer from Inter Milan, Joan Laporta announced that there had been a deal in principle between Barcelona and Inter Milan for Zlatan Ibrahimoviovi to join the club in exchange for Eto'o and €46 million. Following Ibrahimovi's signing of an Interima contract with Barcelona, Eto'o learned the club would go to Milan for his medical to complete the transfer.

Eto'o died on July 27, 2009, and Inter is a medical and surgical company. On his first press conference in Milan, he stated that he wanted to be and refused to compare himself to Ibrahimovi, saying, "I'm Samuel Eto'o and I don't want to compare myself to anyone." I think the victories I have achieved up to now have a lot to do with my name's value." Inter lost 1–2 to Lazio on August 8th on his first appearance in the 2009 Supercoppa Italiana. Eto'o scored on his debut in the 2009 Supercopa Italiana on August 8th. Eto'o scored from the penalty spot against Bari in his first Serie A match two weeks later. The Derby della Madonnina beat Milan on Sunday, winning Inter a penalty after being brought down by Gennaro Gattuso in the box; Milito scored the penalty; Gattuso was yellow carded; and finally sent off. Inter defeated Inter 4–0 in the match. Eto'o scored again against Parma on September 13th, his first goal from open play in a Serie A match.

After Eto'o's move to Inter, he requested almost £2.75 million from Barcelona at the end of September 2009. The fee, which was 15% of Inter's £17.7 million (US$29 million) fee, was due to a percentage of the £17.7 million (US$29 million) fine levied against Barcelona in July 2009. The allegation was based on a Spanish law that a player should receive 15% of the transfer fee to another Spanish club. If the parties were unable to find an agreement, the case could go back to court.

Eto'o scored his first Serie A brace on October 29th, beating Palermo 5-3, with Mario Balotelli scoring twice. Eto'o came in fifth place in voting for the Ballon d'Or, which was won by his ex Barcelona teammate Lionel Messi on December 1, 2009. In the final Group F match against Rubin Kazan, eight days later, he scored his first UEFA Champions League goal for the team, helping Inter win 2–0 at home and advance to the knockout stage as runners-ups. Eto'o continued to be a protagonist for Inter in Europe, netting the winner in the second leg of the 2009-2010 UEFA Champions League round of 16 against Chelsea on March 16, 2010, which allowed Inter to progress to the quarter-finals. He scored his first goal in Coppa Italia on April 13th against Fiorentina in the second half of semi-finals to help Inter beat 1–0 to win 1–0 and advance to the final 2–0 on aggregate. Inter defeated Roma 1–0 at Stadio Olimpico on May 5th to lift the Coppa Italia. Eto'o claimed his first silverware with the club on May 5th. After losing to Siena in the final matchday, Inter's 12 Serie A goals gave them their fifth title in a row. Eto'o was playing in the third Champions League final of his career on May 22nd as Inter defeated Bayern Munich 2–0 to win the first title in 45 years; Milito scored both goals and Eto'o finished second. He became the first player to win the treble in two seasons with Inter's triumph over Bayern Munich.

Inter defeated Roma 3–1 to win the Supercopa Italiana on August 21, 2010, Eto'o scored twice as Inter defeated Roma 3–1 to win the Supercoppa Italiana. In the UEFA Champions League against Werder Bremen on September 29, 2010, Inter's first hat trick for Inter came against him. Inter defeated Inter 4–0, with Eto'o saying, "We will be humble because we know there are teams out there that are better than us," says Eto'o. So we'll just take it one match at a time and we'll go as far as it takes us."

Continuing his stellar play in Serie A and Champions League for the 2010–11 season, he was instrumental in Inter's attack line. Eto'o scored in Munich on March 16, 2011 after he helped Inter Munich beat Bayern Munich 3–2 (winning on away goals) in the Champions League. Eto'o scored the first goal after four minutes, and Wesley Sneijder and Goran Pandev for the winner. "I'm not sure if the one that brought Eto'o to the club was the best piece of transfer market ever," Inter President Massimo Moratti said after the game, but I do agree it was a good piece of business for us." Eto'o is simply amazing. I do not want to take anything away from Ibrahimovi, but for some, getting Eto'o was a great deal. Samuel is truly remarkable." Eto'o scored two goals in the final of the Coppa Italia against Palermo on May 29th, a new record for him.

Anzhi Makhachachhachhachhachchka signed Eto'o in a three-year contract with Inter, making him the world's highest-paid player with a salary of €20 million (after taxes) per season. Eto'o made his Anzhi debut against Rostov with 30 minutes remaining in the game on August 27, 2011, scoring an equalizer later in the 80th minute from a cross by Yuri Zhirkov. Eto'o scored the first goal in a 5-3 loss at CSKA Moscow, leaving his team four points behind Krasnodar with only two games remaining for qualification to the Championship Group.

Eto'o made it to the Top 33 players of the Season list at the 2012–2013 Russian Premier League as the Top Right Striker. Suleyman Kerimov, the Russian football manager, shocked the Russian football world by deciding in August 2013 to reduce the team's ambitions and drastically reduce its budget. As a result, nearly all of the key players, who had previously agreed to make the club world-beaters, were available on the transfer market.

Eto'o signed a one-year deal with Chelsea in the English Premier League for an undisclosed fee on August 29. He scored his first goal for Chelsea against Cardiff City on October 19, 2013, when he gave Chelsea the lead. Eto'o scored twice in Chelsea's home Champions League match against Schalke 04 on November 6, a 3–0 win. Chelsea defeated Manchester United in Eto's first Premier League hat-trick of 2014, earning the Blues a 3–1 win over Manchester United on January 20. Chelsea defeated Tottenham Hotspur 4–0, with defender Jan Vertonghen delivering a backpass straight into his direction on March 8. Eto'o opened scoring in Chelsea's 4–0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. It was his 300th goal in his club career.

Eto'o scored the Blues' third goal of the season in the second leg of Chelsea's Champions League round of 16 tie with Galatasaray, a match that will see the Blues win 2–0. Eto'o maintained his good form after scoring another goal against Arsenal on March 22nd. However, Fernando Torres was then forced to leave after ten minutes after picking up a minor injury; Chelsea went on to win the match 6–0.

Eto'o's Chelsea deal came to an end at the end of the 2013-2014 season, and he joined Everton, a second-year contract. In a 3–6 home loss to Chelsea, he made his debut four days later, scoring one goal with a header. As the Toffees defeated Burnley 31, Eto'o bagged a brace for Everton, driving in the first goal and curling in a shot from outside the region.

He said he wanted to win the UEFA Europa League with Everton, a tournament he had never won before. However, Eto'o was just halfway through his first season with Everton, scoring four goals in 20 games across all leagues.

Eto'o returned to Italy Serie A on January 27, 2015, joining Sampdoria on a two-and-a-year contract.

Eto'o joined Turkish side Antalyaspor on a three-year deal on June 25, 2015. He made his debut on August 15th in a league match against stanbul Başakşehir, scoring two goals and assisting Antalyaspor in their 2-0 win. Eto'o had a rocky start to the season, scoring 13 goals in his first 15 games, and was named interim player-manager for the team after Yusuf imşek was fired on December 7th. He continued in this role until José Morais was hired as the 'imşek's permanent replacement on January 6, 2016.

Eto'o joined Konyaspor on a two-and-a-half year contract on January 31, 2018. After leaving Antalyaspor by mutual agreement, Eto'o joined Konyaspor in league action.

In August 2018, he signed for Qatar SC. He said in February 2019 that he wanted to play for a year more.

Eto'o resigned from football on September 7th.

International career

In a 5–0 friendly loss to Costa Rica on September 9, Eto'o earned his first cap with Cameroon one day before his 16th birthday on March 9, 1997. In 1998, he was the youngest participant of the 1998 FIFA World Cup when he appeared in a 3–0 group stage loss to Italy on June 17th, at the age of 17 years and three months. Eto'o scored his sole goal of the 2002 FIFA World Cup when he netted the game-winner against Saudi Arabia during the group's only victory of the tournament on June 6th.

Eto'o was a gold medalist at the 2000 Summer Olympics and was a member of the Africa Cup of Nations' 2000 and 2002 teams. Cameroon finished runners-up in a 1–0 group stage upset of Brazil on June 19th at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, scoring his only goal in a 1–0 group stage upset of Brazil. Cameroon was disqualified in the quarter-finals of the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations after Eto'o missed the decisive penalty in a 12–11 draw to Ivory Coast, but the tournament's top scorer with five goals finished last year. He skipped a team workout before the quarter-finals to attend the CAF African Footballer of the Year award ceremonies in Togo.

Eto'o made his 14th goalcorer (along with Laurent Pokou) in the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations after scoring his 14th goal against Zambia on 26 January 2008. Eto'o converted another penalty to become the tournament's all-time leading scorer in the following game against Sudan on January 30th, followed by another goal in the same match that brought his Cup of Nations total count to 16. For the second straight tournament, he finished as the top scorer, totaling his 2006 total of five goals.

Following an incident at a press conference on June 1, Eto'o headbutted reporter Philippe Bony on 1 June 2008. Bony sustained an injury, but Eto'o later apologised for the altercation, promising to cover Bony's medical expenses. Eto'o scored a goal in the 68th minute during a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Gabon. In the home fixture, he scored another goal. With eight qualification goals, he led the scoring chart. Eto'o scored in the World Cup qualifying match against Morocco, winning Cameroon a spot in the 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament. Eto'o scored a goal in Cameroon's 2010 World Cup group stage match against Denmark on June 19, 2010, after a mistake by Christian Poulsen. Cameroon later lost the game 2–1 and was banned from the World Cup. Eto'o called it the biggest disappointment of his career. For the first time in December 2010, Eto'o became the first man to be named African Player of the Year for the fourth time.

Since the team refused to play a friendly against Algeria earlier this year, Eto'o was suspended 15 games by the Cameroonian Football Federation on December 16th. In January 2012, the ban was cut to eight months, meaning Eto'o will only appear in four competitive matches. The change was brought about after Cameroon President Paul Biya requested that officials reconsider the contentious sentence.

Eto'o was in the squad against Cape Verde in the first leg of a qualifying play-off for the 2013 Africa Cup of Nations, but the striker refused to participate as a protest against the "amateurish and poorly coordinated" national team set-up. Eto'o has decided to return for the second leg after Cameroon Prime Minister Philemon Yang's visit. However, Eto'o's return to Cameroon was not enough to turn around a 0–2 first leg deficit, and the Indomitable Lions failed to qualify for the Cup of Nations.

With a penalty kick against Togo in a 2014 World Cup qualifier, Eto'o scored his first goal for Cameroon in 16 months. Cameroon defeated Cameroon in their 82nd minute winning goal in the same match, putting them at the top of the qualifying group. In November 2013, he captained the team in their 4–1 aggregate victory over Tunisia in the play-off for World Cup qualifying. Eto'o was selected in Cameroon's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in June 2014, making him the third African to participate in four tournaments after compatriots Jacques Songo'o and Rigobert Song. Eto'o resigned from international competition after joining Everton on August 27, 2014.

Career statistics

International goals

Samuel Eto'o's international goals are listed on the website.

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