Samuel Eto’o couldn’t help but have a joke after being told he ‘played with Lionel Messi‘ during his Barcelona career.
Eto’o spent five years alongside Messi at at the Camp Nou between 2004 and 2009, when the Argentine superstar was first breaking through.
The pair won three La Liga championships and the Champions League in 2009, although Eto’o was the more well-known player at the time.
During his peak, he was considered as one of the finest strikers in the world, and he couldn’t help but mention it in a recent interview.
Eto’o was quizzed on the following: “What can he [Ansu Fati] learn from Messi, since you mentioned him? You obviously had a good time with him…”
With a smile on his face, the former Cameroon international retaliated: “No, it’s not true. It’s unusual that he played with me. Messi took part in a game with me. I didn’t have the opportunity to play with Messi. Messi used to play with me when I was younger. It’s totally different. It’s totally different.”
Samuel Eto’o had to set the record straight when told “he played with Messi” 😅
(via roadto2022en/TikTok) pic.twitter.com/XjOY5heta4
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) July 25, 2021
Eto’o plainly didn’t like the way the question was phrased and shrugged it aside.
Messi was projected for greatness from an early age, but he struggled at the Blaugrana when he first arrived.
Eto’o, a former Real Madrid player, explained how he was able to assist Messi through those difficult times.
He told DAZN per The Sun: “[Messi] confessed to me that, thanks to my advice, which I am not going to reveal, his career had changed.
“One day he said: ‘Thanks to Samuel, my career changed’.
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| Image Credit: PA |
“He had to fix two or three things but he has always had the talent.
“I am proud and happy to see that he has written history which has yet to be finished, and it will be very difficult to beat what he has written.”
“He was going up and down from La Masia to the first team. We already knew that one day Messi was going to be what he is.
“I am happy because he has made it in the end, thanks to himself. He showed me that nothing has changed. He is still the good person I met.”
Featured Image Credit: ESPN & PA Images