In my last posting I pointed out that Milla's performance in the 1990 World Cup created a surge in the development of soccer academies and training centres. Today there are more such academies than universities in the country. One of the most well-known of these academies is the Kadji Sports Academy (KSA), which started taking in students in 1994. The director of the centre is Michel Kaham, one of Milla's coaches during the 1990 World Cup, and himself also a former national team player (in the 1980s).

The KSA, like most of the top academies, caters to two types of students - those who pay for their learning, training and lodging (around $2,900 a year) and those who are on a bursary. It's a model that has helped some of the best players find a way to the top - both soccer-wise and education-wise, since most of Cameroon's soccer stars grew up with very little.

Eight of the 30 players, who have been short-listed for Cameroon's World Cup side this year, including Samuel Eto'o, attended the KSA, and it's thought that at least seven of them will make it on the final team of 23. None of these players paid a cent towards their training or education, according to Kaham. And in return, each time one of them signs a new contract, the academy gets a cut of the money.

Anjali's trip across Africa 

I caught up with Michel Kaham in Douala, where he personally recruited Samuel Eto'o in the early 1990s. Kaham says Eto'o immediately grabbed his attention.

"He came in as a replacement in the last 15 minutes and easily dribbled through defence and scored - exactly how he does today," he said. "He was only 12 or 13 years old at the time, but he already had an ability to control the ball."

At the academy, in addition to refining his skills, Kaham says he worked to channel Eto'o's raw energy and temper.

"You know when you speak to a child, they have a tendency to look at the floor, but [Eto'o] would look you directly in the eyes - like a snake," he said. "[Eto'o] was certain that he was going to go to the top - he had this extreme confidence in himself that made him stand out from the others."

The World Cup may help expose African players

Just the fact that the World Cup is taking place in Africa this year, shows how much things have changed, according to Roger Milla.

"It's the consecration of African football," he said. "We never used to talk about African football at the highest level and today we are organizing the World Cup in Africa."

"It shows that in the last 50 years [since independence] the African continent has worked and progressed a great deal," he added.

And if Africa's formative players, like Milla, have helped in boosting the profile of the continent's players, the World Cup might do the same.

"We have six African countries involved in this year's Cup and in those six countries, there are some really great players," Milla told me.  "We hope that these players will not only play well for their country but also to represent the African continent [to raise the profile of African players] in the future."

There's still a ways to go

I wouldn't say everything is perfect for African professional players today - especially in Southern Europe. Eto'o got his share of ape calls when he was playing in Spain, which he said led him to stop brining his kids to the games: 'At this moment in time I prefer my children don't go to football matches. In the stands they have to listen to things that are difficult to explain to a child. It is better they aren't exposed to it," he is quoted as having said.

And every time I see Inter Milan play, I can't help notice what a great player Mario Balotelli is. He was born to Ghanaian immigrants, but adopted by an Italian family as a young child. As of August 2008, when he turned 18, he was eligible for the Italian side.  He's already represented the country on the U-21 team and, in my opinion, could well keep up with the full squad. But I'm not sure how well that would fly with the public: many Italians hate him.

Balotelli's temper and attitude (including missing a flight to a training session last year) have been heavily criticized by the public and the U-21 coach has advised him to focus on playing well for the junior squad rather than looking towards the World Cup. But I'm not surprised that he has a "petulant attitude." I imagine it would be pretty tough as a teenager to deal with thousands of fans chanting things like "if you jump up and down, then Balotelli dies," or "there's no such thing as an Italian negro - you'll always be an African." CBC blogger Paddy Agnew wrote about the issue.

Can this year's Cup really turn the tides for African players?  I really hope so - I think the professional leagues would only improve with more Balotellis, Millas, Weahs, Drobas, Eto'os and Essiens.

Eto'o version 2.0: Gael Hermans Nomekong

Speaking of the future - Gael Nomekong is known as the future Eto'o in his neighbourhood on the outskirts of Douala.

He's lanky, and like most Cameroonians, has an affinity for skin-tight jerseys (I still haven't quite figured out the trend). He's painfully shy with me - that is, until he gets the ball.

I watched him play with a bunch of his peers on the uneven dirt and sand pitch beside his house. Despite the unpredictability of the surface, Gael stood out - always in complete control of his body and the ball. Control, dribble and distribute. You can check out some pictures of him here (link).

Gael's been playing ever since he can remember. "I'm always on the field - either playing or watching others playing," he said. Football is the only way he can function.

"When I'm not playing football I fall sick all the time," he says, shaking his head like life without football is the most horrible thing he can imagine. "I can't sustain two days in a row without playing, it's not possible."

Gael's parents weren't keen on their son choosing football as a career at first. They thought it was a distraction from his education. But eventually they realized that football was the only way to keep Gael in school.

"We realized that for him to be able to go to school, we would have to let him play football," said Gael's uncle, Prince Edjoto, with whom Gael resides. "Because if you ask Gael not to play football and to go to school, he won't go." They signed him up for the KSA.

So unlike most of the KSA's best players, Gael started as a paying student. But when Michel Kaham saw he had real potential to play pro, Kaham signed him on for a free ride [he's one of six students out of 150 at the KSA now on a bursary]. The benefits would come later if or when he got signed.

"[Gael] has has everything that he needs to be a great player," Kaham told me. "He has intelligence, technique, and a great shot." Kaham says there is still a long way to go - after all Gael is only 13 years old - but "he already has the right type of character to be able to make it as a professional player - and why not -the national team."

In around four years, when the World Cup cycles around again, Gael may ready to sign a contract. I wonder what the playing field for Africa's rising stars will look like then.

Coming up soon: Soccer is Cameroon's national sport, but Cameroon's second national sport? Flirting with women. A bit of the sights and sounds of the game on the streets of Yaoundé and Douala. Of course there will be more soccer thrown in as well....

If you haven't yet checked out the new videos from Ghana, please have a look: The World Cup fashion story is available here and the montage of my time in Ghana is here.

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Canadian journalist Anjali Nayar is travelling across Africa by train, bus and foot (and when necessary by plane), and will arrive in South Africa just before the World Cup. Along the way, Anjali will tell the continent's stories through its favourite sport: soccer.

For the trip, Anjali is bringing only the essentials on her back (camera, flip video, computer) and in her hand - a soccer ball. Every day, Anjali will play soccer, whether she's on the beaches of Accra or stuck in one of Lagos' impenetrable traffic jams. Sometimes she'll play with children in the sprawling slums and refugee camps, other times she'll play with adults in the rich diplomatic quarters of major cities.

Through her Destination: South Africa blog, Anjali hopes CBCSports.ca readers will discover Africa and what the World Cup and the game of soccer means to the continent.