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New York Cosmos sporting director and coach Giovanni Savarese has expressed his desire to link up Samuel Eto'o with Raul in his side's attack, although he says it will ultimately be up to Everton and the player to decide. The Cameroonian was reported to be on the verge of joining Italian club Sampdoria, but some of the momentum has dropped off that move. The Cosmos, who play in the North American Soccer League unaffiliated with MLS, could therefore be about to sneak in and snap up the former Chelsea, Inter Milan and Anzhi attacker, should Everton decide to sell. "We respect Everton and Samuel Eto'o has a contract with the English club and it will be they and the player who decide together what his future will be," Savarese told Tuttomercatoweb.com. "As a club, we are interested in a player of that level, for his quality, his determination and his great will to win. He's a player who, if there were any possibility of getting him, we would be interested in taking. "It's going to be a decision that they [Everton and Eto'o] will take together, then we'll see which club they choose and which will be the best situation for all parties." The Cosmos would be able to offer the 33-year-old a place in their attack along with Raul, 37, whom they signed from Al-Sadd ahead of the start of their season in April. "It would be a really great thing to see such a partnership," added Savarese. "They've both done great things and it would be beautiful, but we respect Everton's wishes and they will decide further down the line if there will be the possibility of selling Eto'o." A spokesman of the New York club echoed Savarese's sentiments, telling ESPN FC: "Samuel Eto'o is under contract with Everton. We think he would be fantastic in New York, but we can't speak with Samuel until we have permission from his club. "We have great respect for Everton and [manager] Roberto Martinez and we will always go about these things in the most professional way." Contrary to previous reports in Italy, Eto'o's move to Sampdoria is not imminent. The Blucerchiati had hoped to wrap up a deal in time for Eto'o to make his debut against his former club Inter in the Coppa Italia on Wednesday night. But Martinez says the deal may have to wait until the end of the transfer window, which closes at 11 p.m. GMT on Monday, Feb. 2. "The Samuel Eto'o situation is something that we're going to make sure that the next two weeks is a period of reflection and see what's the next move in that respect," Martinez told Everton's website. "[By the end of the window] we'll find out one way or another if Samuel is part of Everton going forward or not and we'll announce it [if there's anything to say]." Eto'o, who signed a two-year deal as a free agent in August when he joined Everton after being released by Chelsea, has scored four goals in 20 matches during his time on Merseyside. Martinez has made signing a goalkeeper his priority during the January transfer window, with Tim Howard out until February with a calf injury, but has indicated that he is not expecting any major business before the deadline. He added: "Apart from [Eto'o], I'll be very surprised if there's any major changes. I think the players we've got out injured are going to be back very soon and I want to see that continuity and a strong squad coming out and showing how strong it can be. "The squad is strong enough, that quality we have seen before, but we have been missing too many players." Everton, though, have allowed 19-year-old striker Chris Long to join Championship side Brentford on a month's loan. Information from Mike Whalley was used in this report.
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