Only one piece left, a.k.a. “Helloooo, Number 9!”

By: Kevin | July 19th, 2008

Whither thou goest, Samu? It’s almost as if, which is why I chose this picture, he seems to be saying “I’m going over there, away from here.”

This Eto’o situation is huge, and is weighing on the club and dividing the cules. So let’s look at what we know:

Eto’o has been told by the team that he is surplus to requirements, as they say so elegantly in England, and can seek a new home. We’ve slapped a very fair 30 million Euro price tag on the Cameroonian goal machine.

Guardiola is on record as saying he wants a big, strong central striker.

We have received no serious bids for Eto’o. As in zero. We’ve received many overtures, there have been rumors, but as far as real offers….none.

And what the hell about that trip to Uzbekistan?

Prima facie, we HAVE to sell him this year, or risk getting hosed next season, a la Dos Santos, right? Eto’o is in the next-to-last year of his contract, which leaves us with not many options. Keep him, and he becomes really cheap next season, as clubs will just wait for him on a free transfer.

But as usual with players, there are complications. Eto’o doesn’t seem all that interested in leaving, and will meet in-person with team officials today (probably Txiki and Guardiola) to determine where he stands. So by Monday we should know if he’s staying or not. If he’s practicing with the side and grinning, reckon on him staying.

The initial news that he could leave was greeted with a yawn, basically, as Eto’o said I’m on holiday, I’ll deal with that stuff when I get back. Well, Samu, you’re back. So deal with it.

That Uzbek thing just will not go away. It would, really, be the best move for us and for him. He needs to be revived. Right now, the world knows that he is unwanted by us. So he goes to Uzbekistan, scores about a million goals then returns to Europe on free transfer, since you know he’s going to sign a contract with no transfer fee. He gets a boatload of money, a rumored 50 million Euros for an easy season of work. We get his asking price, which the Uzbeks are more than willing to meet, and everybody’s happy.

The real question, however, is are we crazy??!! Samuel Eto’o has been a Liga goal machine, with a staggering goals to appearances ratio. Almost 90 goals in 136 games for us? Damn! He rolls up in the parking lot and the ball is flying into the net. So what’s the deal, and what do the bosses know that we don’t?

(Ding! It’s Speculation Time!)

He can’t score goals in Champions League play unless backed by the very serious firepower of R10, Messi and Deco. Two of the three are gone, and Eto’o’s 1 goal in 6 appearances last season speaks for itself. If you build a squad to win Europe, the Liga probably goes without saying. The reverse is rarely true, however. Look at the Evil Empire the last two seasons.

And it would seem that the only two real possibilities for Eto’o, given his demands of a big club and Champions League play, are Inter and Chelsea. Inter has only signed Mancini this summer, but Mourinho has a great, big war chest with which to play. But they have one hell of a striker in Zlatan Ibrahimovic. They also have Cruz, and the suddenly revived Adriano. Nobody has been mentioned as being for sale, which means Eto’o is pretty unlikely for Inter, despite rumor-mongering.

Chelsea always has money to splash, and are looking to minimise the leverage that Drogba has by essentially being their only striker worth a damn. They have The Great Sulk, Nicolas Anelka, and the has-been, Shevchenko. So Eto’o would seem a nice move for them, right? Sure. But at present, they’re busy trying to keep on Frank Lampard down on the farm.

Liverpool has been mentioned as a possible suitor, but they already have Kuyt and Torres, and are looking to grab Robbie Keene. Eto’o comes up as a possibility if Keene doesn’t work out.

This means that Eto’o is unsettled, but so are we. We want him gone, both for the money and the closure. Psychologically, this would be Messi’s team through and through, with Guardiola as the steward. Two years. Make it happen or hit the bricks with Laporta.

So what if Eto’o is sold? Let’s look at the possible replacements.

Adebayor, the best option for Guardiola’s requirements, seems to be out of the frame, though I suspect if we sold Eto’o, he would be back in, as we’d have 30 mil or so to play with. Arsenal, for some reason, are being exceptionally difficult with that transfer as regards us, which doesn’t make sense after our gift of a Fabregas egg to them. But Adebayor’s real number, right now, would be about the same as Eto’o, in the 30 million range.

Trezeguet is on the rumor mill again, with the buzz that he recently told Henry that overtures, however preliminary, have been made, despite the “I’m staying put and Juve isn’t selling me” stuff. This doesn’t make me all that giddy. He’s a great in the box striker, but with our offense, you want your striker to, at times, be able to take a pass outside the box and make something happen.

It’s been quiet on the Huntelaar front and Berbatov, last we heard, is still for Man U.

And then there’s that Drogba speculation. He wants out of Chelsea, but they don’t have to sell him as he has three years left on his contract. Their desperation time will be next year.

There were rumors of an Eto’o for Drogba swap, which were laughed at by the London side. Can’t blame them, really. Drogba is almost 6′3″ tall, and nabbed 6 goals in 11 Champions League appearances last season. But he’s 30 years old, has been showing signs of fragility of late, and is quite the hothead.

So that’s where things stand. We will know more after the weekend, but it’s safe to say that at present, this is the most important thing on the agenda. Eto’o has to go, or be signed to an extension. If he stays, I’m not all that geeked about our Champions League chances, absent an on-form Ronaldinho and Deco. But stranger things have happened.

And now, we wait.