Samuel Eto’o hits back at Bill Tchato after Cameroon squad criticism

Samuel Eto’o has responded to former Cameroon defender Bill Tchato after he mocked the current Lions Indomptables squad before their Africa Cup of Nations 2027 qualifier against Namibia.

Tchato, who won 60 caps and scored once for Cameroon, said before Thursday’s Group G match that he did not recognise any of the players now representing the national team.

“I have just watched some images of the Lions Indomptables players and I do not recognise any of them. It makes me laugh a little,” Tchato said on CRTV.

The former OGC Nice player’s comments suggested that Cameroon’s team had lost the high-profile stars associated with previous generations. They did not go down well with Eto’o, who played alongside Tchato for the national side between 2000 and 2008 and later worked with him at the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot).

Speaking on Friday during an event marking the renewal of Fecafoot’s sponsorship agreement with MTN, Eto’o returned the criticism by making fun of Tchato’s standing within the national team.

Referring to the former defender in the third person, the ex-Cameroon striker suggested that Tchato had only been known because he played alongside him.

Tchato spent six years in the French second division before reaching the top flight in 2001. After one and a half seasons at that level, he moved to Kaiserslautern, where he helped the club fight for survival in the Bundesliga.

He later returned to Ligue 1 with OGC Nice, before moving to Qatar. Tchato subsequently went back to France to play in Ligue 3 and finished his career with a final spell in Gabon. He retired in 2013.

In 2019, he became coordinator of Cameroon’s national teams, but Eto’o dismissed him in July 2022. His response to Tchato’s remarks was therefore also seen as a defence of the current players under scrutiny.

Cameroon beat Namibia 2-0 in Douala in their third qualifying match, with Saidou Alioum opening the scoring in the 16th minute and Bil Nsongo adding a second in the 29th minute.

Alioum plays for Jablonec in the Czech Republic, while Nsongo is with Deportivo La Coruna in Spain.

The victory kept Cameroon at the top of Group G, three points clear of second-placed Comoros. The Lions Indomptables remain unbeaten after three matches and will take a significant step towards qualification if they win Monday’s return match in Gaborone, Botswana.