Cantona: The Catalyst

[rondwisan]

08/06/2009 10:02 - ManUtd.com, Steve Bartram
Cantona: The catalyst



There have been longer, less torrid love affairs, but few are burned into the memory as indelibly as Eric Cantona’s five-season fling at Old Trafford. In the week he hits the silver screen in Looking For Eric, ManUtd.com examines why the Frenchman remains one of the club’s most idolised players…

That Eric Cantona's arrival from Leeds only slightly preceded the end of United's 26-year wait for the League title was no coincidence – the Frenchman was the brooding, swaggering catalyst behind the most successful period in the Reds' history.

Prior to his signing, the Reds were teetering between nearly men and battle-hardened winners. So much was already in place for success: The unflinching defence, a midfield combining industry and incision, and the blend of brutality and subtlety in attack.

It was a side which could claim to be the finest in the land, yet still missed that telling je ne sais quoi of champions. Cantona’s arrival provided the Gallic afflatus to send United over the tipping point - just as he had with Leeds some nine months earlier as the Whites pilfered the 1991/92 title from under the Reds' noses.

Midway through the following campaign, with the Reds in steady but unspectacular form, a phone call from Leeds chief executive Bill Fotherby provoked a moment of opportunism from Sir Alex. Fotherby had dialled Old Trafford to broach the potential signing of Denis Irwin. Instead, less than an hour later, he and Leeds boss Howard Wilkinson had agreed to send Cantona across the Pennines for a cut-price £1million.

With that spontaneous counter-offer, Ferguson had bought the player who would bring glory back to United. As the manager subsequently admitted in his autobiography: “One of the most extraordinary periods in the history of Manchester United was about to begin.” But beyond simply signing a top class talent who guaranteed more points and prizes, the Reds had snared a man with the mentality and charisma of a champion. Even the manager was taken aback by the immediacy of Cantona’s off-field impact.

At the end of his first training session at The Cliff, Eric strolled up to Sir Alex and asked him for two players and a goalkeeper, so that he may continue to practice. An extra half-hour was spent with the Frenchman volleying crosses from either side. The next day, half the first team squad stayed for the extra-curricular session.

“Many people have justifiably acclaimed Cantona as a catalyst who had a crucial impact on our successes while he was with the club,” said the manager, “but nothing he did in matches meant more than the way he opened my eyes to the indispensability of practice.”

A squad who, hitherto, had little tangible success to back up their glaring promise was revitalised. Over a quarter-century of anguish and near-misses was soon a distant memory as the Reds elbowed their way to the head of a three-way tussle for the title alongside Aston Villa and Norwich City. There was even the flourish of champions – seven straight wins to end the season in style.

The winning habit had started and Cantona, chest puffed, collar upturned, was the charismatic face of the new champions. Previously something of a journeyman, the Frenchman had a loving home at last. He had achieved near-divinity with United supporters, who saw in Cantona the edgy visionary which had lived deep within Manchester’s favourite sons, from Best to Bez.

As the adulation gushed forth from the stands, the trophies were flowing at a similar rate. In his five seasons at Old Trafford, Cantona won four Premier League titles and two FA Cups. Indeed the only season in which the Reds failed to clinch England’s crown, the French talisman was spectacularly sidelined. Had Cantona not taken exception to the baitings of Crystal Palace supporter Matthew Simmons at Selhurt Park and collected a nine-month ban for his troubles, the history books could very easily tell the tale of United’s five successive league titles between 1993 and 1997.

Cantona’s importance during his playing career was obvious - he was team talisman and a phenomenal player. But it’s the seismic shift in mentality he instigated among the players which continues to be felt around Old Trafford. Over 12 years after he retired, the winning habit he championed shows no sign of culmination.

original: rondwisan

[rondwisan]

“Le Roi”.“Le Dieu”. Or good old – but never, ever, plain old – Eric. Whatever you want to call Monsieur Cantona, the Frenchman’s four-and-a-half seasons at Old Trafford are the stuff of legend.

No.7 shirt collar as stiffly upright as if it had been starched, that imperious look, theatrical swagger and poise, Eric Cantona was born to play for Manchester United – and, even better, he was pinched from across the Pennines to do so.

The wandering ‘enfant terrible’ of French football, despite title success with Marseille in 1991 and close on a half-century of caps for his country, Cantona had famously

‘retired’ from the game at 25 when a trial with Sheffield Wednesday alerted the attentions of Leeds United boss Howard Wilkinson, eager to bolster his side’s flagging title fortunes for the 1991/92 run-in. Enough said about that…Astonishingly, given his success in Yorkshire and a Charity Shield hat-trick against Liverpool during the 1992/93 curtain raiser, Sir Alex Ferguson’s enquiry as to whether the mercurial Frenchman might be for sale was met with a nod in December. A £1.2 million deal – no, that’s not a misprint – was promptly done, and Cantona went to work.

The next four-and-a-half seasons would see him stamp his name indelibly on the club’s history, his heart and soul seemingly in tandem with it: his prophetic pronouncements, his pure, well, Frenchness, finding a spiritual home on the turf where George Best had strutted his stuff so majestically two decades earlier. The missing piece in the long-awaited championship jigsaw, Cantona’s nine goals in 22 league games helped bring home the inaugural Premiership trophy of 1992/93.

With his probing presence, United would fail to win the trophy just once in the following four campaigns, Cantona leading scorer in two and second in the other. It wasn’t just his technical ability that fired the imagination, it was his talismanic qualities. He led by example, defiant, never giving in. It was a three-way relationship between player, team-mate and fans – if he thought it was possible, so did you.

When the FA threw the book at him with a nine-month ban in the 1994/95 season following his infamous Kung-Fu spat with a Crystal Palace fan at Selhurst Park, Cantona retained his dignity and did his 120 hours’ community service with no complaints. And of course, he scored on his return – against the old enemy Liverpool in October, netting a penalty to salvage a point at Old Trafford.

With Cantona orchestrating the talents of a young David Beckham and Ryan Giggs, and Roy Keane in his pomp as midfield general, United proved irresistible in 1995/96. Cantona led the way with 19 goals in all competitions, one of four men to reach double figures. He scored in six consecutive Premiership games through March and April as United faced down the faltering challenge of Newcastle United to take the title. And it was Cantona again, firing through a crowd scene at Wembley, to see off Liverpool in the FA Cup final to complete a second Double in three seasons. That season was the pinnacle of his time at Old Trafford.

At the end of the 1996/97, another title in the bag, but with the disappointment of a European semi-final exit proving a tough cross to bear, he exited stage left. His deeds burn brightly and will never fade. Vive la resistance!

original: rondwisan

[rondwisan]

09/06/2009 10:11 - ManUtd.com, Steve Bartram
Cantona: The showman



This week sees the release of Looking For Eric, starring Reds legend Eric Cantona. Having played to the crowd all his life, a move to the silver screen always beckoned the enigmatic Frenchman…

Every top-level footballer who takes the field knows that the world is watching them. Very few have the nerve to stare back.

Back straight, chest puffed, Eric Cantona would peacock strut around the field, unashamedly flaunting his plumage. Watching United in the mid-90s wasn’t a trip to the football; that was merely a sub-plot in the weekly adventures of the mercurial Frenchman. Exaggerated gestures – hands perched on hips, or thrown frantically around – weren’t just made to the immediate target, they were a gift from star to audience; an insight into the mood of the lead character.

Cantona had the ability to do anything he liked with a ball, but there was scarcely any over-indulgence. The ability to play the simple – and invariably the right – pass was his greatest gift, but his unerring need to entertain meant even the most routine exchange of possession was carried off with classy panache.

The Frenchman never lost sight of football’s position as an entertainment business. Any who sought to blight the game with negativity or stifling tactics were scorned, hence the dismissal of famed French holding midfielder Didier Deschamps as ‘a water-carrier’.

The poise and assuredness in Cantona was unyielding and impossible to ignore. Throw in his bad-boy reputation from repeated dismissals and skirmishes with authority in French football, and here was a character who could capture the world’s attention. Hence Eric fronting numerous Nike advertising campaigns, even long after his retirement.

Most memorable was 1996’s effort, when a host of the world’s top players were pitched into a battle against demonic spoilers from hell (late challenges, stray elbows, Hannibal Lecter mouthguards - it could easily have been Vinny Jones’ Wimbledon). Inevitably, it was Eric who had the killer line and the starring role. Who else could stop the ball, upturn his collar and mutter ‘au revoir’ before belting a shot through the devil’s chest?

Previously, a Nike campaign had accompanied the completion of Eric’s nine-month ban for assaulting Crystal Palace fan Matthew Simmons. “He’s paid for his crimes, now it’s their turn,” billboard posters ominously advised ahead of his comeback against Liverpool. Followed from start to finish by camera lenses, Cantona took just two minutes to lay on Nicky Butt’s opener before having the final say with a late penalty of his own. Not content with the goal, Eric embarked on a jubilant pole dance at the Scoreboard End, giving the world’s press their Monday morning lead.

Never before has an individual been so scrutinised during a match, but to Cantona it was just another chance to shine in the spotlight. Another big occasion which cried out for a star man – the kind of situation in which he invariably thrived.

Two FA Cup Final appearances featured three goals, with two more scored across three Charity Shields (not to mention his 1992 hat-trick for Leeds against Liverpool in the season's traditional curtain-raiser at Wembley).

He top-scored in the 1993/94 and 1995/96 Premier League title charges, bagging a string of vital winners along the way. The more pressure, the better Cantona performed. Some may justifiably point to the Frenchman’s inconsistent form in the Champions League (five goals in 16 appearances), but the fact that United never truly came to terms with the unforgiving nature of Europe’s elite competition during his time at Old Trafford provides some mitigation.

It was one such defeat, to Borussia Dortmund in April 1997, that contributed to Cantona's decision to call it a day. The departure, when it came the following month, was inevitably dramatic - a press conference held without any prior warning.

There was no fading away, no slinking to the back of the stage, merely a step forward, one last emphatic bow and an exit, stage right. Like any great showman.

original: rondwisan

[rondwisan]

10/06/2009 07:00 - ManUtd.com, Steve Bartram and Steve Bibby
Cantona: The goalscorer



No tribute to Le Roi would be complete without a look at some of his most exquisite goals - the elaborate signature of his five stunning seasons at Old Trafford...

United 1 Arsenal 0 Old Trafford, 19 September, 1993
While renowned for his artistry and craft, Eric had brute force in spades. His ability to do the most effective thing meant that he often resorted to simplicity - in this case, just wallop it in the top corner. 30 yards out, against England's number one, but only the reinforced netting prevented there from being Stretford End casualties.

United 2 QPR 1 Old Trafford, 30 October, 1993
As well as the big occasions, Cantona could also take care of more humdrum opponents. A list of forgotten men are reeled off as he nudges the ball around Alan McDonald, speeds towards Clive Wilson and Darren Peacock before drilling a low shot past Jan Stejskal. Fans of old-fashioned physical football will appreciate Mark Hughes' subtle block on Peacock in the build-up.

United 1 Blackburn 0 Old Trafford, 22 January, 1995
Ignore the fact that he was inside the six yard box, this was one of the King's crowning moments. His final act in the 1994/95 season (prior to his Selhurst Park antics and his press conference tomfoolery) was this vital winner against Kenny Dalglish's Blackburn. Having sprinted and contorted to get on the end of Giggsy's cross, a regal nod was all that was required to put United - albeit temporarily - back ahead of Rovers in an absorbing title race.

United 1 Arsenal 0 Old Trafford, 20 March 1996
A rare lack of communication between David Seaman and his defence left Cantona with a loose ball, some 30 yards from goal. That Seaman was still back-pedalling as Eric unleashed a volley goalwards mattered not. Old 'Safe Hands' could have been atop a ladder and he still would have been helpless, so vicious was the dip on the shot as it clipped the underside of the bar and secured three priceless points towards the title.

United 1 Tottenham 0 Old Trafford, 24 March, 1996
With six goals in his previous eight games, Eric was the poster boy for United's 1995/96 title charge, striking winner after winner in a virtuoso run of form, including this decisive strike in a tense clash with Spurs. Having picked the ball up around halfway and drifted infield, Cantona's confidence was clearly overflowing as he opted - successfully - to drill home a left-footed winner past Ian Walker.

United 1 Liverpool 0 Wembley Stadium, 11 May, 1996
Perhaps the dullest FA Cup Final on record, but still one of the sweetest to recall after Cantona sealed his own redemption and the Double Double. After error-prone goalkeeper David James had flapped comically at Beckham's corner, the ball broke to Eric on the edge of the area. No matter that he needed to almost dislocate his hip to deal with the awkward bounce; the ball arrowed through a mêlée of hapless, exhausted Liverpool players before nestling beautifully in the only chink of goal he could aim for.

United 5 Sunderland 0 Old Trafford, 21 December, 1996
Close your eyes and you can still see it. A quick pirouette on the halfway line to evade two defenders, then a breakneck chase goalwards, a drumskin-tight one-two with Choccy and then the most sumptuous of chips in off the post. Simply glorious, and notable for the hallmark celebration; a slow-motion 360 degree turn to all corners of Old Trafford as if to say: "yep, that just happened."

original: rondwisan

[rondwisan]

11/06/2009 11:48 - ManUtd.com, Steve Bartram
Cantona: The leader



Some spend their whole lives aspiring to be leaders; others, like Eric Cantona, give off an overpowering magnetism that others cannot help but follow…

When Eric Cantona arrived at Old Trafford, complete with his enfant terrible tag, the notion of handing him the captain’s armband seemed unfathomable. Four and a half years later, he retired as club captain, having led United to a fourth league title in five seasons and played a central role in the development of some of the finest young talents the club had produced.

It would be easy to assume that the simmering Frenchman underwent some kind of change during his ban for assaulting a Crystal Palace supporter. Having one’s career on ice for nine months, of course, is long enough to cool anyone down. He excelled as a coach to local youngsters during his community service, but there was no defining moment of clarity which prompted an inner evolution. He never changed; he merely assembled a band of followers with his model professionalism and natural gnosis.

It was outside Eric’s control that he returned to a far younger side than the one he had left on the field at Selhurst Park. Gone were Ince, Kanchelskis and Hughes, while the Nevilles, Beckham, Butt and Scholes were first team regulars. For those wide-eyed youngsters, thrown in at the deep end, it was impossible not to see Cantona, past indiscretions and all, as an example to follow. A man described by Sir Alex Ferguson as: “A model pro. The best prepared footballer I have ever had.” Perhaps most persuasively for those of tender years around him, Cantona was a man who carried everything off with a swagger.

"The manager gave him this free role, letting him express himself, do his flicks and score his goals. I think that's why the lads looked up to him so much,” recalls Lee Sharpe. “They thought: 'If I can be anyone, that's who I want to be. I want to be treated like that. I want to play like that. I want to be loved like that.’”

But Eric’s influence extended beyond his playing peers; his opinion was among the most valued at Old Trafford. Youth coach Eric Harrison, fresh from pumping six future England internationals into the Reds’ senior squad, went to the Frenchman to see how the club’s local youngsters compared to those in Cantona’s home country.

"He replied that, ability-wise, they were similar, but he thought the French boys received the ball better than our young players,” reveals Harrison. “I took that onboard straight away and I acted. I introduced more juggling with the ball because it developed good ball control. Surely, if it was good enough for Cantona, it was good enough for my boys.”

Although his words carried substantial weight, Cantona was a character to opted to say little and do much, most notably in the 1995/96 season run-in, where he scored the winner in five of seven 1-0 Premier League wins and the FA Cup Final.

His deeds and aura prompted Sir Alex Ferguson to make him club captain when Steve Bruce left for Birmingham City in 1996. Not one to follow the ranting, raving model of leadership, Cantona had no considered method of motivating his team-mates. He just inspired awe in them all by being himself.

“The players genuinely liked Eric even though he was very often a distant, almost remote figure,” Andy Cole wrote in his autobiography. “Inside the dressing room he would open up, revelling in the banter and mickey-takes. He could mix it with anyone, although he clearly preferred to be a very private individual. You didn't mess about with him, whether he was playing football or having a pint. Off the pitch I saw him as a loner, but a great guy, and the way he behaved laid down a very obvious message: that he was his own man.”

One others couldn’t help but follow.

original: rondwisan

[rondwisan]

12/06/2009 08:00 - ManUtd.com, Paul Davies
Cantona: The fan



In just five years at Old Trafford, Eric Cantona built up a mutual love with United supporters which remains frozen in time...

Eric Cantona remains the most popular player ever to pull on the famous red shirt. George Best was arguably more skilful, Sir Bobby Charlton played more games and scored more goals, and Denis Law was a huge fan favourite and crowned ‘the king’ by the Stretford End.

Yet even in their pomp, none of the Reds’ holy trinity enjoyed the affinity with the supporters that the Frenchman achieved. He was only here for five years, but his impact was enormous. As detailed here on ManUtd.com over the course of this week, Cantona was catalyst to our recent successes, was the ultimate showman, a goalscorer and an inspirational leader. Yet United supporters’ enduring love affair with Eric goes far further than this.

What he did with a football helped, of course - Alex Ferguson described him as his “dream player” – but he also had the other two key ingredients to becoming a United idol: passion and fight. Those attributes sometimes got him in trouble, OK, often got him in trouble, but United fans loved him for it. Some called him a ‘flawed genius’ but to us Reds he was perfectly imperfect. We just saw his readiness to fight for the cause – a virtue particularly appreciated at a time when “Stand up if you hate ManU” could be heard all across the country, even at cricket matches.

And it wasn’t a one-way love affair. Back in 1995, during his eight-month ban for single-handedly attempting to kick racism out of football, he said: “I cannot stress enough how important United fans are to me. They are one of the reasons why I continue doing what I’m doing. The fans here are really special. They make me happy, and when I’m happy I perform.”

Such heart-felt declarations were common, and meant more because they were from someone who rarely wasted words (even his "when seagulls follow the trawler” quote had the desired effect of confusing a room full of journalists). He wasn’t the first to openly express his affection to the fans, but it just seemed to mean more coming from him.

When he was at his pomp, following United became as much about watching him as it was the team – something not seen since the days of Bestie bamboozling fullbacks (and wingers, centre backs, and sometimes his own team mates). But whereas the Irishman’s looks attracted legions of female admirers to Old Trafford, Eric’s appeal was purely football. Not attending risked the chance you’d miss the Frenchman’s latest piece of magic. No man is bigger than the club, or so the mantra goes, but Eric came mighty close.

Even retiring at the age of 30, which seemed criminally early, has merely made the love affair stronger. At the premier of his latest film Looking for Eric [released today] he was greeted by over 100 United fans – there to see their hero in Manchester (well, Salford) one more time.

It’s perhaps fitting in a week where the most recent wearer of the no.7 shirt looks to have got his wish of a move to Madrid, that our thoughts are also be the most popular wearer of that jersey. Ronaldo has been a good servant during his six-year reign, Beckham and Robson were red to the core, but there is simply no comparison to the Frenchman, ‘the king’, Dieu, Eric Cantona.

He might not have kicked a ball for us in over a decade, but he’s rarely far from United fans’ thoughts. We’ve new heroes now, but none that can match the popularity that the Frenchman enjoyed. The "Ooh-aah Cantona” and “12 days of Christmas” chants continue to be sung, something that continues to surprise him.

“The fans watch lots of games and see many players year after year and perhaps they might have forgotten me,” he said recently. “But I’m so glad that they haven’t. I would understand if one day they did forget me, but I love them and the fact that they haven’t. It makes me feel like I am still on the pitch and still at the club.”

There are plenty of us that still wish that was the case.

original: rondwisan

[Dhie_Cantona07]

The Catalyst is the best player ever....The King Cantona

[Lukman]

wah idola ane..

[mac_matthew]

dia pasti pemain favorit fergie.. hehhe

[Redsbusby]

Dan tentunya, Tendangan Kungfu itu ke supporter Crystal Palace, unforgetable memories!!!