Samuel Eto’o admitted that he had never heard about Anzhi Makhachkala
all his life, but with a 20m euro (N4.2b) a year salary, Makhachkala
must be heaven and Eto’o is enjoying every bit of it.
He scored
his second goal in two matches for his new club in Russia and he
declared that he was very happy and comfortable in Russia.
Nearly
10,000 fans filled the crumbling Dynamo stadium last weekend to welcome
the Cameroon striker to the shores of the Caspian Sea and showed why
billionaire Suleiman Kerimov an Oil and steel magnate made him the
richest footballer on earth.
The goal helped Anzhi to a 2-1
victory over Volga Nizhny Novgorod and lifted them into fourth place,
six points behind joint leaders Zenit St Petersburg and CSKA Moscow.
“I’ve
visited Russia many times but it’s only been Moscow and Kazan,” Eto’o
told a packed news conference before the match, referring to trips to
Spartak Moscow and Rubin Kazan for Champions League games with former
club Inter Milan.
“This is my first time in Makhachkala. I must
admit I didn’t know much about this place but I have to say that I’m
pleasantly surprised with what I’ve seen.”
The wealthy Makhachkala
club, who also boast Brazilian left back Roberto Carlos and former
Chelsea midfielder Yuri Zhirkov, last month paid around 30 million euros
to surprisingly lure the four-times African Footballer of the Year from
Italy.
Eto’o had already begun to pay back some of that huge
investment, making a cameo appearance in last month’s league game in
Rostov and scoring a late equaliser to earn a 1-1 draw.
Huge
billboards picturing Eto’o greet visitors along the entire 20km dusty
road from the Makhachkala airport to the capital of the Dagestan
province.
Local fans do almost anything to try to catch a glimpse
of their favourite players, who all live in or around Moscow and fly to
Makhachkala for home games only.
The team’s open practice session
had to be halted several times after dozens of teenage fans jumped over
the fence and ran towards Eto’o, trying to touch or shake hands with
their idol as security looked on.
One overzealous fan even started kissing his feet before being whisked away.
After
changing into a business suit, Eto’o talked to the media. He said he
was determined to fulfil his contract with Anzhi and was not scared of
harsh Russian winters, poor pitches or outdated arenas in many cities
across the country.
“I’ve played football at sub-zero temperatures many times so I’m well prepared for the Russian cold,” he said.
After
team mate Roberto Carlos was racially abused at least twice in his
first season in Russia, Eto’o was asked if he was prepared to tolerate
racial taunts from rivals fans.
“Racism exists worldwide, not only
in Russia,” said the Cameroon captain, who once tried to leave the
pitch because of abuse during a league match in Spain playing for
Barcelona at Real Zaragoz
“It can happen in France, Italy or
Spain. Players face racist abuse in many countries, but every time I
come onto the field I try to do my best for those who love football.”
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