The Ugly Game

GUSTAU NACORINO / REUTERS

TARGET: Eto'o at a news conference in Barcelona

It was 15 minutes before the end of a soccer match last month between Spanish Primera Liga leaders Barcelona and rivals Real Zaragoza when Samuel Eto'o decided he'd had enough. Shouting "No mas!" the Barcelona striker turned abruptly and began to walk off the pitch. The chorus of ape noises from the stands at Zaragoza's Romareda stadium, which had sounded each time the Cameroon-born striker touched the ball, erupted louder than ever. Although the referee, other players and his coach eventually persuaded him to stay, Eto'o knew what he was doing. "This is a struggle beyond the football field," he said...

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