A source close to Eto'o said: "Benitez likes Samuel a lot. Everything is possible for this summer. It will depend on Barcelona's results as well if they decide to buy David Villa. Eto'o is not a player to sit on the bench."
Eto'o, who has scored 25 La Liga goals in 27 games, has one year left on his contract and will be leading the line at the Spanish club for the rest of the season. And that is one reason why Sir Alex Ferguson is tipping Champions League favourites Barcelona as the biggest threat to Manchester United retaining their title.
The United boss really stuck his neck out when he told The Mirror: "Barcelona are the big threat."
Meanwhile, Chelsea and England midfielder Frank Lampard has accused the next generation of Premier League starlets of having it too easy and living pampered lifestyles.
Lampard, who came through the ranks cleaning the boots of Julian Dicks at West Ham United, told the Daily Mail that clubs have gone soft on their youngsters and should return to the old-school apprentice system.
"The lads are forgetting the hard work that needs to be done to earn this sort of lifestyle," the £150k-per-week earner said. "Not enough of them have the same dedication and it's something I feel very strongly about. They think they have made it already."
Lampard continued his words of wisdom in The Guardian where he "delivered a scathing assessment of recent England regimes", according to the newspaper, by crediting Fabio Capello for succeeding where previous managers had failed.
"Capello was exactly what we needed," Lampard said. "To play as a team, you need to have humility and to be selfless. You need to work for your mate next to you, or to play out of position if that's what is required. That kind of thing. That's something he needed to bring, and he's brought it."
And while we have stumbled onto the subject of England a mention must go to Wayne Rooney, who has insisted that he will not change his ferocious approach to the game despite being jokingly labelled as a "crazy man" by Capello.
Rooney was warned about his discipline by the England boss after his red card at Fulham last week but responded with a man-of-the-match performance and two goals in the Three Lions' 4-0 win against Slovakia at the weekend.
Rooney told the Daily Star: "I do get frustrated at times, but aggression has always been part of my game. The desire to win makes me the player I am. Take that away and I’d be totally different. If I’m honest, I’ll never get used to losing!"
And finally, former England international, life-style guru and hyperactive pundit Ian Wright has told out-of-favour striker Michael Owen he must choose between England or horse racing.
"His career is going down the pan and it's upsetting for me," the SunSport columnist wrote. "He's got the rest of his life to concentrate on racing. It's something we all know he loves but football should surely be his priority."
The Newcastle United fans that help fund his £105k-per-week wages would certainly agree.
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