SAMUEL ETOO DECLARES HIMSELF BEST AFRICAN PLAYER
Although the Ballon d’Or eluded him during his
playing time, the Cameroon legend feels he is the best African player ever
Former Barcelona and Inter Milan striker Samuel Eto’o has insisted he is the
best African player in history.
The 38-year-old had an illustrious career where he won 18 major trophies,
including three Champions Leagues and two Africa Cup of Nations titles as well
as an Olympic gold medal.
Eto’o was named the African Player of the Year four times but failed to win the
Ballon d’Or, with his best placing being in the 2005 edition where he finished
third.
Eto’o believes he was the best player from the continent, given his
achievements during his playing time for his country and the various clubs he
played for.
“I don’t need to lay claim to anything, it’s just a fact. Whether you
accept it or not, it’s a fact,” Eto’o told AFP.
“Everyone is entitled to their opinion. You know, as an African, you are
always being judged. What is unacceptable is that the first people to do it are
always the Africans. They can’t take anything away from me because I am proud
to be African.
“When I look at where I came from and how far I got, I tell myself that I
am entitled to be proud. That doesn’t mean I am big-headed, far from it. It is
just that, in this world, people like puppets and I don’t accept being
one.”
Are you keen to finding out raw stats about Samuel Etoo?
Check this out
Career statistics
Club
As of 27 April 2019.
| Appearances and goals by club, season and competition | |||||||||||||
| Club | Season | League | Cup | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Leganés (loan) | 1997–98 | Segunda División | 28 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 30 | 4 | ||
| Total | 28 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 30 | 4 | ||||
| Real Madrid | 1998–99 | La Liga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1999–2000 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 6 | 0 | |||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | |||
| Espanyol (loan) | 1998–99 | La Liga | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Mallorca | 1999–2000 (loan) | La Liga | 13 | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 13 | 6 | |||
| 2000–01 | 28 | 11 | 5 | 2 | – | – | 33 | 13 | |||||
| 2001–02 | 30 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 3 | – | 40 | 10 | ||||
| 2002–03 | 30 | 14 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | – | 36 | 19 | ||||
| 2003–04 | 32 | 17 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 | 2[b] | 1 | 43 | 22 | |||
| Total | 133 | 54 | 14 | 8 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 1 | 165 | 70 | |||
| Barcelona | 2004–05 | La Liga | 37 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | — | 45 | 29 | ||
| 2005–06 | 34 | 26 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 6 | 2[b] | 2 | 47 | 34 | |||
| 2006–07 | 19 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3[c] | 0 | 27 | 13 | |||
| 2007–08 | 18 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 1 | — | 28 | 18 | ||||
| 2008–09 | 36 | 30 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 6 | — | 52 | 36 | ||||
| Total | 144 | 108 | 10 | 2 | 40 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 199 | 130 | |||
| Inter Milan | 2009–10 | Serie A | 32 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 2 | 1[d] | 1 | 48 | 16 | |
| 2010–11 | 35 | 21 | 4 | 5 | 10 | 8 | 4[e] | 3 | 53 | 37 | |||
| 2011–12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 1 | 0 | |||
| Total | 67 | 33 | 6 | 6 | 23 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 102 | 53 | |||
| Anzhi Makhachkala | 2011–12 | Russian Premier League | 22 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 23 | 13 | ||
| 2012–13 | 25 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 9 | – | 44 | 21 | ||||
| 2013–14 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 6 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 53 | 25 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 9 | — | 73 | 36 | ||||
| Chelsea | 2013–14 | Premier League | 21 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 2[f] | 0 | 35 | 12 | |
| Total | 21 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 35 | 12 | |||
| Everton | 2014–15 | Premier League | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1[f] | 0 | 20 | 4 | |
| Total | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 4 | |||
| Sampdoria | 2014–15 | Serie A | 18 | 2 | — | – | – | 18 | 2 | ||||
| Total | 18 | 2 | — | — | – | 18 | 2 | ||||||
| Antalyaspor | 2015–16 | Süper Lig | 31 | 20 | 1 | 0 | — | – | 32 | 20 | |||
| 2016–17 | 30 | 18 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 30 | 18 | |||||
| 2017–18 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 15 | 6 | |||||
| Total | 76 | 44 | 1 | 0 | — | – | 77 | 44 | |||||
| Konyaspor | 2017–18 | Süper Lig | 17 | 6 | 1 | 0 | — | – | 18 | 6 | |||
| Total | 13 | 6 | 1 | 0 | — | – | 14 | 6 | |||||
| Qatar SC | 2018–19 | Qatar Stars League | 17 | 6 | 3 | 3 | — | 3[g] | 1 | 23 | 10 | ||
| Total | 17 | 6 | 3 | 3 | — | 3 | 1 | 23 | 10 | ||||
| Career total | 587 | 293 | 46 | 22 | 111 | 48 | 20 | 8 | 764 | 371 |
International
Main article: List of international goals scored by Samuel Eto’o
| Cameroon national team[9][119] | ||
| Year | Apps | Goals |
| 1997 | 3 | 0 |
| 1998 | 5 | 0 |
| 1999 | 1 | 0 |
| 2000 | 9 | 5 |
| 2001 | 9 | 2 |
| 2002 | 13 | 5 |
| 2003 | 7 | 2 |
| 2004 | 9 | 4 |
| 2005 | 6 | 1 |
| 2006 | 5 | 5 |
| 2007 | 3 | 1 |
| 2008 | 11 | 11 |
| 2009 | 8 | 5 |
| 2010 | 12 | 8 |
| 2011 | 9 | 4 |
| 2012 | 2 | 0 |
| 2013 | 4 | 2 |
| 2014 | 3 | 1 |
| Total | 118 | 56 |
Manager
| Team | From | To | Record | |||||
| M | W | D | L | Win % | Ref. | |||
| Antalyaspor | 7 December 2015 | 6 January 2016 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 40.00 | [82] |
| Total | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 40.00 | — |