Former Barcelona and Cameroon striker Samuel Eto`o has last week announced retirement from all forms of football at the age of 38. The striker who took to Instagram, posted, "The end, towards a new challenge. Thank you all big love". What a way to announce his retirement.
The Cameroonian and ex Barcelona striker, played 234 games for Barca, scored 152 goals, figures that helped him become the top scorer in the 2004/05 league season -25 goals tied with Forlán – and in 2005/06 – 26 goals. Having scored 108 goals in 144 games, Eto’o remains one of the top scorers in LaLiga from Barcelona.
He definitely enjoyed an excellent career having won numerous trophies with Barcelona and also representing Cameroon at four World Cups.
Having started his youth career at Kadji Sports Academy, Samuel Eto joined Real Madrid from where he was loaned to Leganes, Espanyol, and Mallorca respectively.
His inspiring form in Mallorca saw his services needed by Barcelona thus joining the club in 2004. There, he won two Champions Leagues, four La Liga titles, two Supercopa de Espana and one Copa del Rey. He also became the record holder for most La Liga appearance by an African.
His third Champions League title came at Inter Milan under Jose Mourinho’s tutelage and he also added Serie A, Supercoppa Italiana, Fifa Club World Cup and Coppa Italia titles to his impressive stay in Italy.
Though he was unable to collect any winners’ medals at Anzhi Makhachkala, Chelsea, Everton, Sampdoria, Antalyaspor and Konyaspor, before a move to Qatar SC which was his last club, Sammy had a quite interesting and impressive career and he also won the "African Player of the Year" award four times in his career, a record which he shares with Cote d`Ivoire`s Yaya Toure.
Here are his achievements in outline
718 Games.
359 Goals and 116 Assists.
22 Trophies.
4 times CAF Footballer of the Year.
3 UEFA Champions Trophies.
3 La Liga Trophies.
2 AFCON Trophies.
1 Serie A Trophy.
1 Olympic Gold.
2 Copa del Rey and 2 Coppa Italia.
Alongside Liberia's current president George Weah and Ivory Coast's Didier Drogba, he stands as a great of African sport, and cuts a mythical figure in his homeland where he is close to national president Paul Biya and has been seen as a great philanthropist.