African Cup of Nations - Cameroon ban Eto'o for 15 matches
Thu, 15 Dec 15:16:00 2011
Cameroon have banned captain Samuel Eto'o for 15 matches after the forward incited his team-mates to refuse to travel to Algeria for a friendly international last month, the FA said.
"Samuel Eto'o, in his role as captain, incited his team-mates to refuse to travel to Algeria," the Cameroon football federation (Fecafoot) said on its website.
The federation's disciplinary committee added that midfielder Enoh also "lacked respect for the vice-president of Fecafoot".
The players have 10 days to appeal.
Striker Eto'o, 30, four-times African Footballer of the Year, and Ajax Amsterdam's Enoh, 25, were summoned to a hearing on Monday after Cameroon's players went on strike in November, forcing the abandonment of the friendly in Algiers.
Cameroon's players said they had not received money promised for their appearance in a four-nation tournament in Morocco the previous weekend.
The loss of Eto'o, who joined Russian Premier League club Anzhi Makhachkala from Inter Milan for a record salary in August, is a huge blow to Cameroon's hopes of qualifying for the 2013 African Nations Cup and the 2014 World Cup.
The qualifiers for the 2013 Nations Cup begin on February 28 with a first-round match against Guinea Bissau. Cameroon's first World Cup qualifier will be in June against Democratic Republic of Congo.
Cameroon surprisingly failed to qualify for next year's Nations Cup in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea and new coach Denis Lavagne has just started rebuilding his squad.
Left back Benoit Assou-Ekotto was also fined one million CFA francs (£1,280) for failing to turn up for the Morocco tournament.
The Tottenham Hotspur player also has 10 days to appeal.
Reuters
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/16122011/58/african-cup-nations-cameroon-ban-eto-o-15-matches.html
