Zlatan vs Eto'o

Sigma

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Us being linked with Zlatan has got me thinking about how good a striker he is and has been for club and country. He is one of those players though that is just below the elite players such as Messi and Ronaldo. Another one of those players in my opinion is Eto'o. Both top quality players, but who was better?

That famous transfer of 40 million pounds (or something, can't quite remember the fee) + Eto'o for Zlatan obvisouly was in favour of Eto'o as Eto'o went on to win the champions league and Zlatan despite winning the league, wasn't favoured by Guardiola and so wen't back to Italy, this time with AC Milan.

They may have different skill sets - Eto'o is fast and tricky where as Zlatan is strong and central to the team's performance but both undeniably knew where the back of the net was. The reason I am comparing them is I just believe there are in that class below the likes of Messi and Ronaldo. That and their careers have been sort of paralleled to each other, especially with that Inter - Barca switch.

So who do we think is better? Who would you rather have on your team?

EDIT: From Wikipedia Eto'o has 323 goals and 81 assists in 673 club appearances. Zlatan has 392 goals in 677. But you would have to factor in that Zlatan has played in more dominant sides, Ajax, Both Milan's (except the 2011-12) and Paris.
 
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Ødegaard

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Zlatan.
Eto'o might (definitely) have been faster, but in every other aspect, it's Zlatan for me.
 

sincher

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Both high class, but based on their careers I think Zlatan is a touch ahead of Eto'o, except in his head, where he is miles ahead.
 

Duafc

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But who is better between Zlatan, George Weah and Joey Barton???????
 

Nicklas

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Overall: Zlatan, easily.
At their peak: A bit tougher, but for me Zlatan just edges it.
 

berbatrick

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Eto'o was a much better cog in the Barca machine and could probably be both the main man and a good foil. Zlatan needs to be the focus but he's devastating at it. I also think Eto'o gets a little underrated as a fast striker, he was more. And a big-game player too - scored in both CL finals.
 

Sigma

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berbatrick said:
Eto'o was a much better cog in the Barca machine and could probably be both the main man and a good foil. Zlatan needs to be the focus but he's devastating at it. I also think Eto'o gets a little underrated as a fast striker, he was more. And a big-game player too - scored in both CL finals.
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I think I would have prime Eto'o in my team over Zlatan, but it's an extremely tough choice.

Also scored a hatrick against us.
 

berbatrick

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Sigma said:
I think I would have prime Eto'o in my team over Zlatan, but it's an extremely tough choice.

Also scored a hatrick against us.
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Holy shit I remembered the 09 final but I had wiped the Moyes season from memory, it took me a few seconds to locate what you were talking about. Thanks :mad:
 

saivet

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Eto for me. Ibra's stats have been boosted massively since moving to France. Eto a key player in 3 CL winning sides. The guy was class, better striker than Zlatan, though more will remember Zlatan for the big personality he is.
 

Randall Flagg

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the deal between Inter and Barcelona seemed the most stupid ever. I considered Eto'o twice the player as Zlatan + Barcelona dished out about £20m on top of Eto'o

Eto'o went on to win the CL with Inter while Zlatan fell out with everyone at Barcelona

Based on this alone Im going to say Eto'o was much better but Zlatan seems to have aged far better
 

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Eto'o for me. More capable of making it work when he wasn't the focal point. Then ran himself into the ground playing on the wing under Mourinho. Just more of a team player. If it wasn't for being in Messi and Ronaldinho era teams he could have been the focal point of any team in the world
 

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Zlatan is slightly better, but Eto'o could fit almost into any team with ease. If I already had a strong team and looking to add another quality option then Eto'o. If I'm looking at building a team then likely to start with Zlatan as the main man.
 

#07

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Eto'o. Zlatan is a super player but Eto'o was, to me, the best #9 since Luiz Ronaldo: strength, speed, shooting ability.

At the top of his game Eto'o was neigh on impossible to stop. Showed up in so many big games too. For example, the 2009 Champions League final and the 2010 Champions League semi.

Zlatan is the more skilful of the two, Eto'o the greater asset to a team.
 

#07

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sincher said:
Both high class, but based on their careers I think Zlatan is a touch ahead of Eto'o, except in his head, where he is miles ahead.
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Based on their careers? Eto'o won the treble at Barca then won it again, the very next year, at Inter. In the latter season he was essential to Inter smashing Barca. I don't see how their career achievements are comparable.
 

Bojan11

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If I was offered peak Eto or Zlatan then I'd go for Eto. He was lightning quick and could play in any system.

But once he slowed down obviously Zlatan was the better player because he didn't need pace to be successful.
 

sincher

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#07 said:
Based on their careers? Eto'o won the treble at Barca then won it again, the very next year, at Inter. In the latter season he was essential to Inter smashing Barca. I don't see how their career achievements are comparable.
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Obviously their career achievements are comparable.

Zlatan is the 5th most decorated footballer of all time and no other current player has won more major trophies. Eto'o has also been highly successful but is not in the top 10... partly because he emerged later of course. Still absolutely reasonable to suggest that Zlatan has had the better career, though he has never won the CL (and probably never will if he joins us).
 

sincher

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The main difference is that Eto'o's peak was not nearly as long.
 

Ibi Dreams

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At the time of their swap transfer I rated Eto'o more highly, which made it seem like such a weird deal.
 

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The bias will be in because we're most likely getting Zlatan. Eto'o was the best striker in the world at his peak. Zlatan has never been that.
 

harms

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Depends on your team, really. If you're building one around the player, it has to be Ibra - he simply has more in his locker, he is equally good at goalscoring but he also has brilliant playmaking skills which puts him one step above Eto'O. But if you already have a main star then you'll be better off with Eto'O. He is less selfish and more hardworking, and with his speed and trickery he can play off the defender's shoulder, forcing the opposition to create spaces for his teammates.
 

Skills

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I want to throw Villa's hat in the ring too. Brilliant striker
 

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Eto'o in his prime seemed more healthy for the team. In terms of individual ability Zlatan is probably the clear winner though.
 

sullydnl

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Zlatan might have been a slightly better footballer but Eto'o would have suited a lot of teams more, not least Barca. That was a horrendous deal on their part.
 

Gio

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Fortitude said:
The bias will be in because we're most likely getting Zlatan. Eto'o was the best striker in the world at his peak. Zlatan has never been that.
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I'm not sure who was a better no9 than Zlatan at his peak.
berbatrick said:
Eto'o was a much better cog in the Barca machine and could probably be both the main man and a good foil. Zlatan needs to be the focus but he's devastating at it. I also think Eto'o gets a little underrated as a fast striker, he was more. And a big-game player too - scored in both CL finals.
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Fair summary. It's the big Swede for me and I imagine we'll look back at his goals portfolio in a few years with incredulity.
 

Fortitude

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Gio said:
I'm not sure who was a better no9 than Zlatan at his peak.

Fair summary. It's the big Swede for me and I imagine we'll look back at his goals portfolio in a few years with incredulity.
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What is Zlatan's peak?

What has he done in the CL?

Eto'o was a vital, multi-CL winning component at both striker and RW.
 

Gio

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Fortitude said:
What is Zlatan's peak?

What has he done in the CL?

Eto'o was a vital, multi-CL winning component at both striker and RW.
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Well his peak is hard to define because his longevity has been so sustained. He has been in the top 3 centre-forwards/line-leaders since 2008. Others have come and gone, joined him in that group for a year or two (Villa, Torres, Rooney, Van Persie, Aguero, etc), but have either gotten injured or dropped out of form, while he maintains that exceptionally high level.

Obviously Eto'o's Champions League credentials are almost unparalleled amongst no9s in recent years, so it's really about how much weight you want to allocate that against league, cup and international football. While under-delivering in the Champions League knockout stages on the whole, he's performed in plenty of big games over the years. His record for Sweden at times has been single-handed and talismanic, having shone brightly in three different European Championships.

There's not a lot in it because Eto'o brings other qualities into play such as pace, work-rate, mobility and self-sacrifice that compensate for the gap in technique and creativity.
 

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Eto'o. you don't win international tournaments with characters like Ibra.
 

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Eto'o was a fecking great striker. He was better in his prime, affecting games for Barcelona at the very highest level, and again when playing at Inter.
 
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