In a recent interview, Idriss Diallo highlighted a quality that many Cameroonians wish Samuel Eto’o would adopt. Several of Eto’o’s former colleagues, including his ex-director Bruno Tagne, have accused him of interfering in player management.
According to Bruno Tagne, Samuel Eto’o has been suffocating the Cameroon national team, preventing them from giving their best.
“For his ego, he imposed inhumane and unprecedented conditions on the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon, whom he claims to love with all his heart. However, some players have felt liberated from this negative influence and tyranny since December 2021,” he stated after Cameroon’s victory over Cape Verde in the third round of World Cup qualifiers on June 8, 2024.
Tagne subtly referenced certain players who have reportedly felt pressured by Samuel Eto’o, including André Onana. Meanwhile, Idriss Diallo, President of the Ivorian Football Federation, assured in a press conference during the fourth round of World Cup qualifiers in Malawi that he does not intervene in player selection or impose techniques on the coach.
“We assembled this squad and, by God’s grace, we won the AFCON. I entrusted the reins to Emerse and his staff. I am a non-interventionist president. He has his project, which he presented to me, and we discussed it. He will implement it. All the players here are those chosen by Emerse, just as Gasset chose them before,” he affirmed.
Some figures in Cameroonian football would have preferred Samuel Eto’o to adopt this hands-off approach, akin to Idriss Diallo’s stance.
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