Cameroonian Football Federation president Samuel Eto’o apologised profusely after a violent altercation with a man holding a camera outside a FIFA World Cup match in Doha on Tuesday.
“I would like to apologise for losing my temper and reacting in a way that does not match my personality.I apologise to the public for this unfortunate incident,”
the former Barcelona, Inter Milan and Cameroon striker wrote on Twitter.
After Brazil’s 4-1 win over South Korea in the tournament’s round of 16, Eto’o was seen on video walking away from Stadium 974 while posing for photos with fans. According to ESPN, he then appeared to react to comments made by a man holding a camera. As per The Telegraph, this man was Algerian YouTube vlogger Said Mamouni.
In the video, Eto’o’s entourage appears to be holding him back; however, he breaks free and runs a flying knee into the man, who immediately falls to the ground. Not long after, the man regains his composure and rises to his feet.
“I pledge to continue to resist the relentless provocation and daily harassment of some Algerian supporters. Indeed, since the Cameroon-Algeria match on March 29 in Blida, I have been the target of insults and allegations of cheating without any evidence,”
Eto’o added.
Mamouni stated in a video that he is filing a complaint at a Qatari police station. He went on to say that Eto’o attacked him after he asked the 41-year-old, who is still Cameroon’s all-time leading scorer at the African Cup of Nations, if he’d bribed the referee in Cameroon’s match against Algeria earlier this year.
Cameroon defeated Algeria 2-1 in the second leg of its World Cup qualifier in March. Cameroon failed to advance beyond the group stage in Qatar, earning only four points out of a possible nine in games against Switzerland (0-1), Serbia (3-3), and Brazil (1-0). The World Cup comes to an end on December 18.
