Samuel Eto'o caught copying and pasting heartfelt goodbye message to fans

Eto'o has just left Italian side Sampdoria after a mere half a season in order to sign for Turkey's Antalyaspor.

And Samp fans were touched and delighted when he paid an extravagant tribute to them and the club in his goodbye message posted on social media.

"Dear Blucerchiati, I've been blessed to spend these past few months with you. To my pleasure, I have discovered here a crowd of warm, passionate, affectionate and supportive fans...

"It's time for me to leave, but wherever I go, I will always remember what it is to be in a place where football is not only a passion but a way to keep a family together. A BIG "Thank You" to the U.C. Sampdoria staff who helped me settle down and gave me the opportunity to once again experience the pleasure to play in the Serie A.

"Thank you to Sampdoria Lawyer Romei Antonio for his constant help…Of course a special Thank you”, to our president, a father to me, who made it all of that possible. He believed in me from the first to the last minute, and for that I will forever be grateful to him.

"It was an honour to be part of your army. You will always be in my heart."

Touched and delighted, that is, until they learned that he hadn't even bothered to write them a new message, instead deciding to make a few minor edits to the exact same Tweet he shared with Everton fans just a few months earlier:

"Dear Toffees, I've been blessed to spend these past few months with you. To my pleasure, I have discovered here a crowd of warm, passionate, affectionate and supportive fans...

It's time for me to leave, but wherever I go, I will bring with me all the memories we've built together.

"A special "Thank You" to the Everton staff who helped me settle down and of course to our manager Roberto, who made all of that possible.

"It was an honour to be part of your army. You will always be in my heart."

That's right - Eto'o used almost all of the Everton message, just chucking in a few extra words here and there to personalise it.

Okay, so this is pretty horrendous in one sense, revealing exactly how top players are probably laughing at fans as they bounce from one big pay cheque to the next.

But it's pretty smart thinking in another - and why should such tricks be confined to football superstars?

So next time you leave a job, or play your final match with a five-a-side team, don't bother thinking of something fresh to say.

"Dear [TEAM/COMPANY NAME]

"I've been blessed to spend these past few [MONTHS/YEARS] with you. To my pleasure, I have discovered here a crowd of warm, passionate, affectionate and supportive [COLLEAGUES / TEAM-MATES]...

"It's time for me to leave, but wherever I go, I will bring with me [INSERT GENERIC PLATITUDE]

"A special 'Thank You' to the [UNIMPORTANT BEHIND THE SCENES PEOPLE] and of course to [THE ONLY PERSON WHOSE NAME I BOTHERED REMEMBERING WHILE I WAS HERE], who made all of that possible.

"It was an honour to be part of your army. You will always be in my heart.

"Yours Sincerely, [PUT YOUR OWN NAME HERE, YOU SHAMELESS SCOUNDREL]"