Russian offer for Eto'o 'can't be refused'

17 August 2011 - 14:55 By Sapa-AP
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Eto' with his teammate Marco Materazzi of FC Internazionale Milano celebrate after scoring the opening goal during the Tim Cup final between FC Internazionale Milano and US Citta di Palermo at Olimpico Stadium on May 29, 2011 in Rome, Italy
Eto' with his teammate Marco Materazzi of FC Internazionale Milano celebrate after scoring the opening goal during the Tim Cup final between FC Internazionale Milano and US Citta di Palermo at Olimpico Stadium on May 29, 2011 in Rome, Italy
Image: Paolo Bruno/Getty Images

Inter Milan president Massimo Moratti is hoping to sell standout  striker Samuel Eto’o to Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala because the offer is just too good to turn down, and it coincides with new financial fair play standards being introduced by UEFA.

Anzhi is reportedly prepared to pay Inter between $29 and $43 million for the 30-year-old Eto’o and give the Cameroon international a three-year contract worth $29 million net per season.

   “When an offer like that comes around, it’s difficult to match or refuse,” Moratti told Wednesday’s Gazzetta dello Sport.

   Anzhi officials were in Milan for meetings with Eto’o’s agent and Inter on Wednesday, the Gazzetta and the ANSA news agency reported. Eto’o will reportedly undergo medical exams for Anzhi in Rome some time over the next few days, after which the deal will be  completed.

   Moratti added that UEFA’s new financial rules have forced clubs to evaluate their budgets and spending more closely.

   This season’s club accounts are the first ones that formally have to be given to UEFA for inspection — by June, 2013.

   “Financial fair play is serious,” Moratti said. “Whoever doesn’t  respect the parameters will find themselves excluded from European competition.”   

Anzhi, from the troubled southern Russian province of Dagestan, is owned by billionaire businessman Suleiman Kerimov.

   Inter is eyeing Diego Forlan of Atletico Madrid or Ezequiel Lavezzi of Napoli as a replacement for Eto’o, with Moratti saying he doesn’t expect a deal with Manchester City for Carlos Tevez.

   Meanwhile, playmaker Wesley Sneijder appears set to remain at Inter.

   “There was never any sort of deal for Wes,” Moratti said. “If Eto’o goes he stays, but seeing as Sneijder was untouchable even before this possibility, he’s even more so now.”

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