New York Cosmos in talks for Everton's Samuel Eto'o, wages are an issue

According to an ESPN report, the New York Cosmos are one of a handful of clubs chasing Everton striker Samuel Eto'o. Roberto Martinez seems willing to let the Cameroonian leave during the January transfer window, and left him out of the squad for this week's FA Cup loss because of the transfer potential:

"A couple of clubs contacted us in the last 12 hours, so I decided to leave him out. We will see what is best for all of us."

The report suggests that the Cosmos and Eto'o are quite a ways apart in terms of wages, something that shouldn't be a huge surprise given that Eto'o signed with a Premier League club on a Bosman this past summer. Because of those wages, though, its unlikely that Everton would be looking at a substantial fee to make the transfer happen, instead taking the wage relief and using it to improve the squad in other areas.

Eto'o is not the attacker he was during his prime at Barcelona, but having watched him very closely with Chelsea last season, I don't think there's much debating that he'd still be an elite player in North America. Should the Cosmos get creative enough to bring Eto'o to New York in 2015, they'd instantly be the most fascinating club to watch in the United States.

Cross your fingers...