Samuel Eto'o: pride and sacrifice

MILAN – "No documentation? No trial." With those few words, a dream was in flames. Samuel Eto'o Fils arrived in Paris on a second-class flight, determined to set the footballing world on fire. In 1995, aged just 14, he arrived having managed to get a trial at Paris Saint-Germain. Though his supreme talent had convinced many observers, his passport had expired and he was sent back to Douala, Cameroon. Back in his home country, his determination to succeed grew ever stronger. He said he would "run like a black man to live like a white man".

Those very words, which he uttered a number of years later during a news conference when he was at Barcelona, are indicative of the difficulties this player faced – building a career from nothing to become one of the great players in Europe. Following the doomed visit to Paris, Eto’o travelled to Le Havre, where he was rejected once again, and then to Real Madrid where he struggled with the demands of the club. Once he left Los Blancos, cast aside yet again, he reacted as only he knows how: running harder and faster than everyone else. His next stop in Spain was at Leganés, on the outskirts of the capital, before he moved on to Mallorca. That was where everything changed.

It was here that Samuel Eto’o, the lethal goal scorer that all of European football grew to know, developed his habit of finding the back of the net. During his time at Mallorca he scored 62 times, a record which led to his first call-up for the Cameroon national team. At international level, he won a gold medal at the Olympics in Sydney in 2000 and won two African Nations Cups, in 2000 and 2002. One year after the second continental victory, Eto’o and the ‘Indomitable Lions’ were hit by the tragic death of Marc-Vivien Foe, who died on the pitch during the 2003 Confederations Cup semi-final. He’s a player who will never be forgotten in Cameroon, and his name was remembered in February 2017 after the national team won another African Nations Cup. This time a new generation of players, led by Hugo Broos, were victorious in Gabon.

Eto’o described his national side as one which "will make you proud, wherever you are", but he realised that to become "the greatest African player of all time" – as Patrick M’Boma described him – his achievements at international level and at Mallorca would not be enough. The youngster needed to keep on running. It was at Barcelona where he unleashed himself onto the highest European stage, winning everything there was to win with Frank Rijkaard and in the majestic first season of the Pep Guardiola era. After a starring role in Barca’s 2009 Champions League triumph, Eto’o opted for a new, fascinating challenge – joining an Inter side led by Jose Mourinho.

His spell in Milan began with a goal in the Italian Super Cup, although Lazio won in Beijing. That season also saw the Cameroonian come up against his former club, in one of the tensest moments of his career. The Portuguese genius in the dugout placed Eto’o in an unfamiliar role, on the left-hand side, where he was able to showcase both an eye for goal and a dogged defensive side. In his first season with the Nerazzurri, the striker was a key component of the team’s treble-winning campaign – providing new impetus. The dream began to take shape in London, when Eto’o scored to give Inter a 1-0 win over Chelsea in the return leg of the round of 16 tie. Inter’s victory in the final took place in Madrid, in most appropriate fashion, where more than 10 years previously he had been cast aside by Real.

At that grand footballing arena, the Santiago Bernabeu, the career of Samuel Eto’o had gone full circle. He had secured his place in football history, celebrating with the Cameroon flag around his neck. Despite the many obstacles he faced on his journey, he won and won big. As he celebrates turning 36, we reflect on a player that was destined for success in the Nerazzurri colours.

Bruno Bottaro