Samuel Eto'o close to being highest paid footballer

Inter Milan will certainly reach a deal that will

send Samuel Eto’o to Russian club Anzhi Makhachkala, a transfer that could make the Cameroon striker the highest paid footballer in the world.

Anzhi is expected to give Eto’o a three-year contract worth €20 million ($29 million) per season, eclipsing the estimated €12 million ($17.4 million) that Cristiano Ronaldo earns at Real Madrid and the €10.5 million ($15.2 million) that Lionel Messi is paid by Barcelona.

Inter was negotiating with Anzhi officials in Milan for a transfer fee between €20 and €30 million ($29 and $43 million) for the 30-year-old Eto’o.

“We’re very close. We could close today, tomorrow or next week,” Anzhi representative German Tkachenko said late Wednesday, according to the ANSA news agency.

Eto’o also met with Anzhi officials in Milan on Wednesday.

Anzhi, from the troubled southern Russian province of Dagestan, is owned by billionaire oil tycoon Suleiman Kerimov.

Anzhi’s captain is 38-year-old Roberto Carlos, once the standout left back for Brazil.

The transfer fee would also make it one of the most expensive deals this season, near the €29 million ($42 million) Barcelona paid Arsenal on Monday to bring Cesc Fabregas back to his boyhood club.

The biggest deal during this transfer window was the 38 million pounds ($62 million) Manchester City paid Atletico Madrid for Sergio Aguero last month. Also, Paris Saint-Germain paid €42 million ($60 million) to Palermo for Javier Pastore.