Samuel Eto’o turned 35 in March and appeared to be in the process of winding down his career with Antalyaspor in Turkey.

However, the Cameroon international is now set to return to the big time - and by that, we mean the Champions League.

Eto’o will continue in Turkey, where he scored an impressive 20 goals in 31 league games last season, but he is set to seal a move to Besiktas.

This is according to Goal, who understand the Turkish champions have reached an agreement with the former Barcelona superstar.

Besiktas are now trying to thrash out a deal with Eto’o’s current employers and hope to be able to make an official announcement soon.

Besiktas wanted Mario Gomez

Senol Gunes’ side, who are among the top seeds for the 2016-17 Champions League group stages, initially tried to sign Mario Gomez on a permanent deal.

The Germany international was superb for Besiktas last season, scoring 26 goals in the Turkish Super Lig - more than any other player in the division.

However, the 31-year-old opted against extending his loan deal with the Turks and has instead returned to Fiorentina.

Despite the recent events in Turkey, it’s clear that Eto’o is happy to continue plying his trade in the country.
Besiktas also keen on Mario Balotelli

But after signing Eto’o, will Besiktas still try and sign Liverpool’s out-of-favour striker Mario Balotelli?

Besiktas president Fikret Orman raised eyebrows earlier this week when he told reporters: “Mario Balotelli is the type of footballer that our fans can associate themselves with.

"I'm pretty sure he would attract great attention.

"To be fair, if he wasn't deemed as a trouble-maker, he wouldn't be rumoured to be joining us. But we can show some effort and create solutions for Balotelli's infamous troubles. I think he can change with the attention and care he'll receive in Turkey.

"In short, we want Mario Balotelli and he wants us too."

Unlike Balotelli, Eto’o is a reliable scorer of goals and his acquisition will be a coup for the Turkish title holders, despite his age.