Samuel Eto'o and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. Two world class strikers, separated by just a single year in age, but rarely have two forwards been less alike in playing style.
The proposed swap deal that will see Eto'o (plus cash and Alexandr Hleb on loan) move to Inter, with Ibrahimovic heading in the opposite direction to Barcelona, is certainly one of the more fascinating transfer deals that this summer of big names and big money has thrown up.
Should the deal go through, how will the different styles of Eto'o and Zlatan gel with their new team-mates and most importantly, which club will be getting the best deal?
On paper, it would seem that Inter appear to be the winners in the proposed deal. A fee of £35m has been mooted in the press, which when taking into account the market value of Eto'o, means that Barca are effectively willing to invest around £50m in Ibrahimovic, the enigmatic Swedish international. In return they are gaining a striker whose struggles in the Champions League have been well documented, while losing a centre forward who has scored 130 goals in 200 games during his time at the Camp Nou.
“Eto'o may be left rueing his attempts to milk Man City”
So, yes, the Cameroonian is still the more prolific, but Ibrahimovic has scored his goals in a league where strikers traditionally find the going a lot tougher. The Serie A and La Liga are vastly different in style, with Italian teams favouring a more negative, defensive approach to games in an attempt to stifle the opposition. What’s more, Ibrahimovic has often had to create goals for himself. While Eto’o has had arguably the best midfield in the world (plus Messi and Henry) providing the ammunition for him, Ibrahimovic has dragged an Inter side that has been seriously lacking in creativity to three successive Scudetto triumphs in his three years at the San Siro.
So while Ibrahimovic may not be worth the fifty-odd million that Guardiola is willing to gamble, I believe that in comparison with the struggles Eto’o will find in Italy, the Swede will flourish with the Catalan giants. The 27-year old’s ability to drop deep to hold the ball up and bring others into play will act as a better foil for Henry and Messi than Eto’o ever could, while his imaginative flicks and slick footwork will see him fit right in with Barca’s well-oiled passing machine. He may not bring as many goals to the table as Eto’o, but with better service than he experienced at Inter and facing dodgier defenders, who knows? Besides, it’s not as if Barca actually need any more goals anyway!
Eto’o on the other hand, may find life at the Giuseppe Meazza an entirely different kettle of fish to the adoration and trophies he collected during his time with Barcelona. The Serie A is not ideally suited to strikers of his type. Taller, stronger forwards have tended to fare better in the goalscoring stakes in Italy’s top division and the lack of chances created by Mourinho’s one-dimensional midfield will come as a real shock to the system for the Cameroon star.
Ultimately, this deal could see the career of one striker soar and one slip away. My betting is that it will be the ‘lazy and overrated’ Ibrahimovic who will be laughing should his Barca move become a reality, while Eto’o may be left rueing his attempts to milk Man City for a ridiculous weekly wage.
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