Barca aims to keep top striker Eto´o

Barcelona president Joan Laporta said on Monday he hoped to hold on to Samuel Eto’o despite interest in the Cameroonian striker from some of Europe’s top clubs.

“We’re trying to find a way in which he can stay,” he said after talks between the player’s agent, Josep Maria Mesalles, and Barca?s director of football Txiki Begiristain.

That was the message from Messalles too.

“The player is not going to be looking to go. He likes it here and there is no better place to live than Barcelona,” he said, but added “we?re not ruling anything out.”

Eto’o, the top scorer for Barcelona in the league this season with 30 goals, is under contract with the Catalan side until 2010.

But the 28-year-old has reportedly sparked interest from big-spending English Premier League club Manchester City, French side Lyon and Italy’s Inter Milan.

Spanish media have tipped Valencia’s David Villa, Atletico Milan’s Diego Forlan and Inter Milan’s Zlatan Ibrahimovic as possible replacements for Eto’o.