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“Winning a World Cup Is One of the Easiest Things…” – When Samuel Eto’o Declared ‘Europeans’ Have ‘Less’ Talent Than African Countries

Published 01/08/2024, 8:59 PM EST

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Cameroon’s legend Samuel Eto’o has won ‘the lot’ in club soccer. The former Barcelona man is one of those rare players to have won a treble with 2 different clubs (Barcelona 2009 and Inter Milan 2010). The FIFA World Cup trophy, however, has eluded the gifted attacker, but as per him, winning a World Cup isn’t that difficult. Moreover, he added that Europeans ‘lack talent‘ compared to Africans. What could he have been implying?

Samuel Eto’o was appointed the ambassador at the 2022 FIFA World Cup. He had made a wild claim then that Morocco would beat Portugal & Spain en route to the final. Although Morocco was eliminated in the semis, Eto’o made everyone take notice. In a conversation interview with the Athletic in 2022, Eto’o once opened up on his thoughts regarding African soccer. He said, “I don’t see why an African country will not win the World Cup.”

The former Barcelona man then gave his reasoning. Samuel Eto’o explained, “Africans have a lot of talent, Europeans a little less.” However, it was his comment regarding soccer’s biggest tournament that was the most surprising. Eto’o said, “[Winning a World Cup], is one of the easiest things to do.” His reasoning was likely based on the fact that the World Cup can be won with 7 good games.

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Unlike a grueling 38-match league campaign, soccer’s premier tournament does not require months of constant consistency. However, the pressure is intense and there is a huge element of luck involved. It is also very much possible that the former star was trying to boost the morale & confidence of African countries. After all, the star has always backed Africa when it comes to soccer.

Eto’o has always been team ‘Africa’

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The Cameroon international has always been vocal when it comes to supporting African players & countries in general. Ahead of the 2022 WC, Samuel Eto’o had claimed that Cameroon would face Morocco in the World Cup final. Furthermore, he predicted good showings from the likes of Senegal, Tunisia, Ghana, etc.

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The Cameroon legend had previously said that African players are not respected. This was after Mohamed Salah & Sadio Mane were omitted from the Ballon d’Or shortlist in 2019 despite helping Liverpool win a Champions League. His former Barca teammate Lionel Messi made the cut ahead of them, but Eto’o’s allegiance was quite clear.

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What do you think of the comments made by Eto’o? Tell us below.

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Written by:

Adithya Narayanan

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One take at a time

Soccer was the first sport I played in my life. It turned out to be my favorite one by an absolute mile. In my younger days, I became a Liverpool fan but it was only when Jurgen Klopp arrived that my passion for the game intensified.
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Edited by:

Daniel D'Cruz