Life after Anzhi, which way Samuel Eto'o

Samuel Eto'o and his other high-earning team-mates at Russian club Anzhi  Makhachkala are currently faced with the tasks of searching for new clubs after billionaire club owner Suleiman Kerimov decided to downsize the club as well as its ambitions. It was even reported in some quarters that the entire team has been put up for sale and that the club now wants to invest more in developing young footballers.

It comes as no surprise really seeing as the owner was throwing money at players as soon as he took over the club in Jauary 2011. Samuel Eto'o as Captain of the club earns a staggering £330k a week which dwarfs even the earnings of Messi and Ronaldo and made him the highest paid footballer on earth. Few other players were signed on massive wages as well but sadly, all these couldn't land the club the domestic league or European titles. It took the whole of two years for the Billionaire to understand that money can't buy you instant success in football..

There are some very good footballers in the team who could easily secure contracts elsewhere but the player  likely to be hit the most remains Eto'o who due to the crazy wages he commands, may have to part with a substantial % of his wages before he could get a deal anywhere in the world. 

There has always been this danger of withdrawal of financial support (without or at short notice) by private owners  and this explains why most football followers  are in full support of the Financial Fair Play rule recently introduced by FIFA but which won't come into effect until 2014. The system adopts a pre-cautionary approach which would ensure clubs do not spend more than a certain % of their earnings. And with the increase in private ownership of clubs, this Anzhi experience could be the kick up the backside that football needs to bring it back into the real world, considering the outrageous fees and wages that's currently being thrown at players and managers. 

The message is simple and clear: The bubble can burst anytime.