Doctor Khumalo is the greatest, says Cameroonian star Eto’o
Cameroonian Samuel Eto’o believes Doctor Khumalo was the greatest South African footballer.
Cameroonian football star Samuel Eto’o (4th from left) with some African legends of the game and staff from the Castle brand of South African Breweries. Photo: Zanele Siso of Zanephoto
Cameroonian international and one of Africa’s greatest footballers Samuel Eto’o believes Doctor Khumalo was one of the greatest soccer stars to come out of South Africa, Alex News reports.
He also believes that Bafana Bafana will one day bounce back to the big league but only if they can do the basics right. Khumalo was the midfield kingpin of the Bafana Bafana team that went on to become Africa’s greatest in 1996 by winning the African Cup Nations.
READ MORE: Doctor Khumalo explains his role at Baroka
Eto’o was speaking in Johannesburg at the launch of the Castle Africa Five Series, a five-a-side football tournament which will be played in six African countries – South Africa, Lesotho, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe – from 1 February with the final scheduled for Lusaka in Zambia on 31 May.
The Discovery Soccer Park in Illovo was abuzz with a horde of sports journalists and soccer legends who had come to witness the launch of the tournament, whose ultimate winner in Zambia will be heading for Russia to watch the final of the 2018 Fifa World Cup.
Eto’o is the ambassador of the Castle Five Series and now plies his football trade in Turkey for club Antalyaspor. He is the most decorated African player of all time, having won the African Player of the Year award a record four times.
The football great got tongues wagging when he said Khumalo, for him, was SA’s greatest player.
“I liked Doctor Khumalo a lot and for me, he is the best South African footballer I know.”
Speaking of Bafana Bafana, Eto’o, who scored more than 100 goals in five seasons with Barcelona, and is also the record holder for the number of appearances by an African player in the Spanish LaLiga, said Bafana stood a good chance of bouncing back to the glory days of the 1996 team.
“They have all the potential to become a great African team again but only if they can get the basics right.”
Eto’o also played for Russian outfit Anzhi Makhachkala and assured the eventual winners of the Castle Five Series of the warmest hospitality in Russia.
“Russia is a nice country. I played there for several years and I am confident the winners will get the best of Russian hospitality during the finals of the World Cup.”
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