Samuel Eto'o hopeful of making £18 million Manchester United move Despite the collapse of his proposed move to Manchester City, Samuel Eto'o is still hopeful of securing a transfer to the Premier League – with Manchester United
The Barcelona striker's agent, Josep Maria Mesalles, is optimistic that the English champions will make a formal bid of £18 million for the Cameroon striker tomorrow.
Manchester City publicly ended negotiations with Eto'o on Friday evening, having grown exasperated with the length of time the transfer was taking. City made a bid of £25.5 million for Eto'o and, because he only has a year left on his contract, left it up to the player and the club to decide how much of that Eto'o would get as a pay-off.
It is understood the player wanted as much as a £13 million share, on top of the wages of £200,000 per week City were offering. City will now concentrate on wrapping up a deal to sign Carlos Tevez, expected to be confirmed this week, and on their continued pursuit of Chelsea's John Terry.
United would be able to get Eto'o for significantly cheaper than City, with the 28 year-old eager to play in the Champions League. One source in Spain suggested that United are prepared to offer Eto'o £150,000 per week, but said there is a problem with his demand for a four-year contract.
Sir Alex Ferguson is apparently a long-standing admirer of the player, who scored the opening goal against United in Barcelona's 2-0 Champions League final victory in May.
Eto'o's wage demands have painted the player into a corner. His relationship with Barcelona has deteriorated dramatically, culminating in his rejection of a proposed contract extension – sent by text message - on the same wage terms of his current deal, believed to be £130,000 per week.
He made it clear he wants to leave on Friday, having been angered by comments made about him by Barcelona president Joan Laporta.
Eto'o's other options are limited. Long-standing suitors AC Milan have decided to try and sign Brazil striker Luis Fabiano from Sevilla instead, while Inter Milan and Chelsea have identified targets in other areas.
Barcelona are desperate to sell Eto'o rather than lose him for nothing next summer. David Villa of Valencia is their first-choice replacement, with Diego Forlan of Atletico Madrid their back-up.
Eto'o, however, may choose to play a game of brinkmanship and wait until the end of the window when Barcelona may be forced to drop their asking price.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/premierleague/manutd/5805609/Samuel-Etoo-hopeful-of-making-18-million-Manchester-United-move.html
