FCBARCELONA.CAT

10.02.2009 13:53

One explosive goalscorer on another

Marc Guillén

Hristo Stoichkov and Samuel Eto’o are two famously temperamental people. The Cameroonian has just overtaken the Bulgarian in the Barça goalscoring stakes, and Stoichkov has compared himself and Eto’o for Barça TV.

Samuel Eto’o has scored 118 goals for Barça and is now the seventh highest scorer in the club’s history. With two goals against Sporting, he has now scored one more than Hristo Stoichkov, but the Bulgarian is anything but bitter and says “it would be great for him to score 118 more”.

“Eto’o loves Barça”

Hristo Stoichkov feels it is hunger for success that has led Eto’o to do so spectacularly well. “If he has scored so many goals it is because Eto’o loves Barça, he wants to be the best, Golden Ball, Golden Boot, Best Player in Africa. Any player that has his mind set on such things just can’t go wrong.”

Two goals short of Golden Boot

The 21 goals scored by Eto’o in the league mean he is just two shy of the target said by RB Salzburg striker Marc Janko, the current leader in the race for to be Europe’s top scorer. Janko has scored 30 goals, but goals in the Austrian league are calculated as being worth 1.5 points, half a point less than in the major European leagues. So, Eto’o has 42 points and Janko 45, but the latter has one game less to play.

In the Liga All Time Top 14

Eto’o joined the Spanish League with Real Madrid in the 1998/99 season. Since then he has scored 153 times, making him the 14th highest scorer in championship history. And he is still only 27, but has already overtaken the likes of legendary Athletic man Satrústegi or former Barça heroes Julio Salinas and Kubala. The highest goalscorer in Liga history remains Zarra with 251 goals.

Third highest Barça scorer

If only counting goals scored in a Barça shirt, Samuel Eto’o has 99, making him the third highest scorer behind only Kubala with 131 and César with 195.