One of the biggest conflicts in African football few actually know about.
Samuel Eto’o has often been a hot-tempered guy on and off the pitch – especially when someone came up with unfounded criticism towards him or the team he played for.
In 2010, a few days before the World Cup in South Africa kicked off, the striker harshly replied to what his boyhood hero Roger Milla [one of Cameroon’s best-ever goalscorers] said about the national team ahead of the competition.
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To be more precise, Milla stated that Eto’o ‘brought lots to Barcelona and Inter but never anything to Cameroon‘. Something that could’ve treated like an insult by a player of Samuel’s calibre.
“People should respect me and they must shut up because playing in the quarterfinals [what Milla did with Cameroon in 1990] is not the same as winning the World Cup. My career does not just end in the quarterfinals. I’ve won the Olympic Games [in 2000], I’ve won two Africa Cup of Nations [in 2000 and 2002].
“How many Champions Leagues have I won? I don’t need to answer anything,” Eto’o told French journalists, his eyes burning with wrath.
“I’m 29 years old and I’ve known glory for seven years. Is Roger Milla a coach? He must shut his mouth. The feelings I had for my idol mean that I can’t say what I really think of him. But I’ve realised the facts and he hasn’t made history,” he said to add some extra fuel to the fire.
Ironically, Eto’o was the only player to score goals for Cameroon at the upcoming World Cup. He went on to become only the fourth Cameroonian to score in multiple WCs (alongside Roger Milla, by the way).
Did Eto'o have Roger Milla in mind when he screamed after scoring #Worldcup goal vs. #DEN? Milla has said Eto'o doesn't roar for the lions
— John Leicester (@johnleicester) June 19, 2010
Finally, Eto’o finished his international career with a 17-goal lead over Milla on the list of country’s top goalscorers.
In 2013, when Samuel announced his decision to retire from international football, Roger Milla was among the first people to ask him to come back to the national team.
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