Leeds United
On 6 November 1991, after Liverpool's 3–0 victory over Auxerre in a UEFA Cup Second Round second leg tie at Anfield, Liverpool manager Graeme Souness was met by Frenchman Michel Platini at the end of the game, who told him that Cantona was available for sale to Liverpool. Souness thanked Platini, but declined the offer, citing dressing room harmony as his reason. In January 1992, Cantona arrived in England for a one-week trial with Sheffield Wednesday, managed by Trevor Francis, who were on course for a third place finish in the First Division just one season after promotion.
When offered a further week extension to the trial, he refused and instead joined Yorkshire rivals Leeds United, where he was part of the team that won the final Football League First Division championship before it was replaced by the Premier League as the top division in English football. His transfer from Nîmes cost Leeds £900,000.
Cantona made 15 appearances for Leeds in their championship-winning season and despite only scoring three goals he was instrumental in their title success, primarily with assists for leading goalscorer Lee Chapman. He scored a hat-trick in the Charity Shield 4–3 win over Liverpool in 1992, and followed that with another in a 5–0 league win over Tottenham Hotspur. His hat-trick in the Charity Shield places him among the small elite group of players to have scored three or more goals in games at Wembley Stadium.
Cantona left Leeds for Manchester United for £1.2 million on 26 November 1992. Leeds chairman Bill Fotherby had telephoned Manchester United chairman Martin Edwards to enquire about the availability of Denis Irwin. Edwards was in a meeting with United manager Alex Ferguson at the time, and both men agreed that Irwin was not for sale. Ferguson had identified that his team was in need of a striker, having recently made bids for David Hirst, Matt Le Tissier and Brian Deane, and instructed his chairman to ask Wilkinson whether Cantona was for sale. Fotherby had to consult with the manager Howard Wilkinson, but within a few days the deal was complete.
[edit]Manchester United
[edit]1992–93 season
Cantona made his first appearance for Manchester United in a friendly match against Benfica in Lisbon to mark Eusébio's 50th birthday, wearing the number 10 shirt. He made his competitive debut as a second half substitute against Manchester City at Old Trafford on 6 December 1992, wearing the number 12 shirt. United won 2–1, though Cantona made little impact that day.
United's season had been disappointing up to Cantona's signing. They were falling behind the likes of big spending Aston Villa and Blackburn Rovers in the race for the first Premier League title, as well as surprise challengers including Norwich City and Queen's Park Rangers. Goalscoring had been a problem since the halfway point of the previous season – when it had cost them the league title.
Brian McClair and Mark Hughes were off form, and summer signing Dion Dublin had broken his leg early in the season, ruling him out of action for six months. However, Cantona quickly settled into the team, not only scoring goals but also creating chances for the other players. His first United goal came in a 1–1 draw against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on 19 December 1992, and his second came on Boxing Day in a 3–3 draw against Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough where they claimed a point after being 3–0 down at half time. However, controversy was never far away, and on his return to Elland Road to play Leeds a few weeks later, he spat at a fan and was fined £1,000 by the FA.[9]
In Cantona's first season at Old Trafford, United won the inaugural Premier League by 10 points – winning the title for the first time since 1967. In doing so, he became the first player to win back-to-back English top division titles with different clubs.
[edit]1993–94 season
Manchester United retained the Premier League, and Cantona's two penalties helped them to a 4–0 win over Chelsea in the FA Cup Final. He also collected a runners-up medal in theFootball League Cup, which United lost 3–1 to Aston Villa. He was also voted PFA Player of the Year for that season. However, the season was not without its moments of controversy; Cantona was sent off as Manchester United exited the Champions League against Galatasaray, and he was also dismissed in successive Premier League games, firstly against Swindon Town and then against Arsenal. The two successive red cards saw Cantona banned for five matches, including a FA Cup semi-final clash with Oldham Athletic, which United drew 1–1. Cantona was available for the replay and helped them win 4–1.[8]
1993–94 was the first season of squad numbers in the Premier League. Cantona was issued with the number 7 shirt; a squad number which he kept for the rest of his career at United.[15] However, squad numbers were not set for the UEFA Champions League matches and Cantona wore the number 9 shirt in all four fixtures against Kispest Honved and Galatasaray respectively.
[edit]1994–95 season
In the following season United looked to win a third successive league title, and for the first half of the season things went smoothly enough. The season began with a 2–0 Wembleywin over Blackburn Rovers in the Charity Shield, in which Cantona scored a penalty.[16] Cantona frequently scored for United, who put intense pressure a Blackburn Rovers side that led the table for much of the season, particularly with a 4–2 win at Ewood Park in late October, in which Cantona was on the scoresheet. He was also on the scoresheet the following month in a memorable 5–0 derby win over Manchester City, and on 22 January he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 home win over Blackburn which made the title race even tighter and brought Cantona's tally of league goals for that season to 12.[17]
However, on 25 January 1995 he was involved in an incident which attracted headlines and controversy worldwide. In an away match against Crystal Palace, Cantona was sent offby the referee for a kick on Palace defender Richard Shaw after Shaw had pulled his shirt. As he was walking towards the tunnel, Cantona launched a 'kung-fu' style kick into the crowd, directed at Crystal Palace fan Matthew Simmons, followed by a series of punches.[18][19]
At a press conference called later, Cantona gave what is perhaps his most famous quotation. Cantona said, in a slow and deliberate manner: "When the seagulls follow the trawler, it's because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea. Thank you very much."[12] He then got up from his seat and left, leaving many of the assembled crowd bemused.
Cantona was arrested and convicted for assault, resulting in a two week prison sentence. This was overturned in the appeal court and instead he was sentenced to 120 hours ofcommunity service.
In accordance with the Football Association's wishes, Manchester United suspended Cantona for the remaining four months of the 1994–95 season, which ruled him out of first team action as United were still in the hunt for a second double. He was also fined £20,000.
The Football Association then increased the ban to eight months (up to and including 30 September 1995) and fined him a further £10,000. The FA Chief Executive Graham Kellydescribed his attack as "a stain on our game" that brought shame on football. FIFA then confirmed the suspension as worldwide, meaning that Cantona couldn't escape the ban by transferring to a foreign club.[20] Manchester United also fined Cantona two weeks' wages and he was stripped of the French captaincy;[21] his club eventually lost the Premier League title to Blackburn Rovers.
There had been media speculation that Cantona would leave English football when his ban finished, but Alex Ferguson persuaded him to stay in Manchester, despite interest from the Italian club Internazionale (who had managed to lure his team mate Paul Ince to Italy that year).
Even after signing his new contract, Cantona was frustrated by the terms of his ban, and on 8 August, he handed in a request for his contract to be terminated, as he no longer wanted to play football in England. The request was turned down and two days later, following a meeting in Paris with Alex Ferguson, he declared that he would remain at the club.
In 2011, Cantona admitted that the infamous attack on the Crystal Palace supporter was "a great feeling" and a memory he is happy for fans to treasure.[22]
[edit]1995–96 season
In his comeback game against Liverpool on 1 October 1995, Cantona set up a goal for Nicky Butt two minutes into the game, and then scored a penalty after Ryan Giggs was fouled. However, eight months without competitive football had taken its toll and Cantona struggled for form prior to Christmas - by 24 December, the gap between Manchester United and league leaders Newcastle United had increased to 10 points.
A goal by Cantona in United's league clash with West Ham United at Upton Park triggered a 10-match winning run in the league. Over the second half of the season, several more United games ended in 1–0 wins with Cantona scoring the only goal, though it was actually a draw (in which Cantona equalised) with Queen's Park Rangers on 9 March which saw United overtake Newcastle on goal difference. They stayed there for the rest of the season, and on the final day of the season United beat Middlesbrough 3–0 at the Riverside Stadium to win their third title in four seasons.
Manchester United also reached the 1996 FA Cup Final against Liverpool, and with regular captain Steve Bruce missing through injury, Cantona was named as captain. He then scored the only goal of the game in the 86th minute and became the first player from outside the British Isles to lift the FA Cup as captain; Manchester United became the first team to win "the double" twice.
[edit]1996–97 season
Cantona was confirmed as United's captain for the 1996–97 season following the departure of Steve Bruce to Birmingham City.
United retained the league in the 1996–97 season; Cantona had won four league titles in five years with United (six in seven years including those won with Marseille and Leeds United), the exception being the 1994–95 season which he had missed the second half of through suspension.
At the end of the season he announced that he was retiring from football at the age of 30.[23] His final competitive game came against West Ham on 11 May 1997, and his final appearance before retiring was five days later on 16 May in a testimonial for David Busst (the player whose career had been ended by an injury suffered against United the previous year) against Coventry City at Old Trafford.
Cantona scored a total of 64 league goals for Manchester United, 11 in domestic cup competitions, and 5 in the Champions League, bringing his tally to 80 goals in less than five years.
[edit]After leaving
In 1998, the Football League, as part of its centenary season celebrations, included Cantona on its list of 100 League Legends. Cantona's achievements in the English League were further marked in 2002 when he was made an inaugural inductee of the English Football Hall of Fame.
In his 1999 autobiography Managing My Life, Alex Ferguson claimed that Cantona had informed him of his decision to retire from playing within 24 hours of United's Champions League semi-final defeat to Borussia Dortmund, though the decision was not made public for almost a month afterwards. During that time, there had been speculation about his future at United, including talk of a move to Real Zaragoza of Spain.
Returning to Britain in 2003 to pick up the Overseas Player of the Decade Award at the Premier League 10 Seasons Awards, Cantona said of his premature retirement, "When you quit football it is not easy, your life becomes difficult. I should know because sometimes I feel I quit too young. I loved the game but I no longer had the passion to go to bed early, not to go out with my friends, not to drink, and not to do a lot of other things, the things I like in life."[24]
In 2004, Cantona was quoted as saying, "I'm so proud the fans still sing my name, but I fear tomorrow they will stop. I fear it because I love it. And everything you love, you fear you will lose."[25]
He was interviewed in the Number 7's issue of United Magazine in August 2006 stating he will only come back to Manchester United as 'Number 1' (meaning not return as assistant manager or coach) and would create a team like no other and play the way he thinks football should be played.
Cantona opposed the Glazer takeover of Manchester United, and has stated that he will not return to the club, even as a manager, while the Glazer family is in charge. This came as a disappointment to the many United fans who voted him as their choice for United's next manager in survey over the summer of 2000. At this stage, it had been expected that manager Sir Alex Ferguson would retire in 2002, but the manager later had a change of heart and is still at the helm a decade on.[26]
In July 2008, it was reported by the Sunday Express that Cantona had been having second thoughts, with a " close friend " of Cantona's allegedly revealing: "Eric does fancy the idea of helping out with the coaching at a club like Manchester United... He has been enjoying himself appearing in and directing films and being involved in beach soccer but has always wanted to help produce a team in his style and knows that Sir Alex Ferguson would encourage him".[27]
