In an account from Joseph Valéry Fotso, the stadium announcer at the Amadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé, Samuel Eto’o’s announcement of his international retirement is described. After the victory against Libya, Eto’o gathered his teammates in the locker room and expressed his decision.
“When his teammates arrived at the locker room, Samuel Eto’o welcomed them and asked everyone to come together because he had a little statement. Everyone got up from their place and approached the table, including the coach, Volker Finke, Sylvain Monkam, the physical trainer, and even Emmanuel Ambane, the psychological trainer. Missing, but slightly placed behind him (Samuel Eto’o, editor’s note), Alexandre Song. Samuel blurts out: ‘Where is Alex?’. And he replied right behind him: ‘I’m here, capi.’ Samuel said to him: ‘We must come.’ Before saying this: ‘Thanks guys. Thank you for everything you have done for me. It’s because of you, everything we’ve done together, that I am where I am. I’ll leave you, I’m leaving. You chose Nicolas Nkoulou as captain. Encourage and support him. In all families, there are problems, there are difficult times. The most important thing is to be able to manage. Stay united. The future is before you. You know, there’s too much talk around us. You should avoid listening to gossip. I leave you, and I am convinced that there is a formidable team from Cameroon that is growing. May God protect you, and I wish you good luck.'”
Cameroon, victorious against Libya with a 1-0 score on Sunday in Yaoundé, may head to the 2014 World Cup play-offs without the presence of the Chelsea striker.
