After a successful hosting of the inaugural Laikipia and Beyond Unity Cup (LUC) football tournament, LUC’s patron Samuel Eto’o has promised the residents of Laikipia a lifetime present at next year’s edition: to invite Argentina’s Lionel Messi.

“I promise to be back next year for the second edition of the tournament. I want you to have the same spirit. I’ll try to bring Lionel Messi with me, I’m sure he’ll accept my invitation.”

Gifted with a lethal left foot, outstanding vision, near-unstoppable dribbling skills and sublime technique, Messi is a sight to behold.

Add in his explosive changes of pace, timing and nose for goal – a trait particularly in evidence in La Liga 2010 – and you have an idea why fans from Laikipia can’t wait for 2011.

“I can’t wait to see that world class player. He’s the best in the world. Mimi hupenda vile yeye huchenga wasee jo, (I really admire how he dribbles past players),” said William Muhinja from Central Rhinos, who was voted the tournament’s best player.

Historic day

After a rather disastrous outing with the Indomitable Lions at the 2010 World Cup coming against a backdrop of high expectations from Africans to perform at the top notch level, Eto’o drew incredulous gasps upon his arrival in Nanyuki.

“We were told to expect him but no one believed he would really come,” marvelled 22-year-old John Bosco Murithi.

“The young people thought it was another deception. This is like a miracle. It is a historic day for football in this area and will give new confidence to this whole region because almost nothing ever makes it this far up-country.”

Eighteen-year-old form four student Sam Gitonga concured. “Now that I have seen him Live,” he declared. “This will inspire me forever.”

He watched as Central Rhinos edged out Northern Elephants 7-6 on post-match penalties in the finals of the month-long tournament, met several soccer academy kids, dined to the soothing sounds of Kenyan songbirds, but Eto’o will live to remember Kenya mainly for the heroic welcome he received.

Conservation efforts

“The first edition of the LUC has scored goals on and outside the field. By bringing communities together, promoting environmental wellbeing of people here, has truly made a difference,” said Jochen Zeitz, founder of the Zeitz Foundation.

“When I get back to Inter (Milan), I’ll make sure I pass your regards to McDonald Mariga,” said Eto’o, before he boarded a Police van from the Nanyuki Municipal Stadium.

Cameroon skipper Samuel Eto’o has said the Indomita-ble Lions need to concede that they all came short at the 2010 World Cup, rather than pile all the blame on departing coach Paul Le Guen, and wants them to quickly forget about the nightmare in South Africa and bounce back in stronger shape.

The 29-year-old forward refused to call time on his international career after the Indomitable Lions failed terribly at the World Cup and became the first nation to be knocked out following defeats at the hands of Japan and Denmark.

Cameroon were also beaten in their final match, against the Netherlands and went home having lost all three games.

The poor performance of Africa’s most successful World Cup team continues to be a hot topic and Le Guen, the Frenchman who was roped in after the Indomitable Lions fared badly in their first two games, has already left and is now expected to join Australia as its head coach.

Despite all the criticism that Cameroon have received, both at home and abroad, but Eto’o refreshingly continues to play the role of peacemaker in a team split by internal strife and believes that the Indomitable Lions can emerge from their nightmare in South Africa and turn into a major force again.

“We are all responsible. It would be easy to say that it is the fault of the coach. I think the players are equally responsible as the coach,” said Eto’o.

“We are all in the same boat and it is important not to look for a scapegoat. But Paul Le Guen did what he could and it is not his fault. We’re all disappointed.

“We went to South Africa with high hopes of having a good World Cup, but it was not possible.”

Cameroon were one of the five African teams that fell at the first hurdle during this World Cup with hosts South Africa, Cote d’Ivoire, Nigeria and Algeria all failing to negotiate their way past the group stages.

The immediate focus for the Indomitable Lions would be qualification for the 2012 Nations Cup finals, with their campaign getting underway in September, and Eto’o feels his country should forget about the problems they faced in South Africa and find the strength to move forward.

Cameroon will play Senegal, the DRC and Mauritius for a place at the 2012 Nations Cup finals.

“We cannot go back now. We must look to the future. And the future comes quickly because we already play in September. We must reorganise this and try and come back strongly,” said Eto’o.

“The most important thing now is to tell the people of Cameroon, thank you for their support. Yes, we’re disappointed not to meet their expectations, but in football this is sometimes the case.

“The most important thing now is to reorganise, have a strong plan going forward and do something good.”

The Indomitable Lions skipper, Africa’s most decorated player when it comes to the European Champions League which he has won three times, said there were some positive things that emerged from Cameroon’s show at the World Cup finals.

“It was not all bad, we still had the chance to discover some young players and we can say that in three months we have the qualifiers for the Africa Cup,” said Eto’o. “So hopefully we can restore some pride then.”

The Inter Milan forward was involved in a public row with Cameroon legend Roger Milla who questioned his commitment for the Indomitable Lions just before the World Cup.Eto’o threatened to quit, then hit back at Milla, before the retired star — hero of the Indomitable Lions’ great run at Italia ’90 — fired the final shot, following Cameroon’s elimination, saying that he still believed the Inter Milan striker had again failed his nation.

There have been reports of serious divisions in the Cameroon camp and Milla revealed that some players were not even on talking terms.

That is probably explained by the way some of the key players have, unlike Eto’o, heaped the blame on the team’s failed campaign firmly on Le Guen.

Mohamadou Idrissou, the Germany-based forward, questioned Le Guen’s commitment to Cameroon shortly after the team’s elimination.

“I am furious with the coach. I’m from Cameroon, there are people who are here for us, but who are lying to us. They are not here for the country and that’s why we have to go home,” he said.

He still insists that there were some fatal flaws with the way the Indomitable Lions approached the 2010 World Cup.

“I’m here to tell the truth because we have not come here to walk around. There are some who thought we’re here for a holiday. People were wrong,” he said on his blog.

“We made all the necessary preparation for the World Cup but at no time did we have permanent starting team to play the World Cup. All the teams we have faced had a permanent starting squad.

“We played friendly matches with different players. We arrived in South Africa and this continued. Two days before the first game, the coach could not find a team that should start. “Two hours to the game, he calls us to communicate the starting 11. A starting 11 who have not even played together during training. Every two days, we have the meetings, the minister breaks our heads. We’re not here for politics, it is football.”

Achille Emana, the Cameroon midfielder, also accused Le Guen of getting his cards wrong.

“We are the only team that has in three games used 20 players. We cannot build a team with kids. If you look at Holland, they were qualified but kept the same team for the third game,” he said.

“I cannot go with Paul Le Guen as coach of the Lions because I cannot enter a team where a coach substitutes you without telling you why, without looking at you in the face and giving you an explanation.

“The same rigor that he brought to the beginning, we did not feel afterwards. I think the whole problem started at the African Cup where we played with 21 players.

“It is easy to blame the players. It has been four friendly matches, we have not won a single because it was not the same team.”