Sports People in Profile; Eric Cantona
Written by; Tao MacLeod
Éric Daniel Pierre Cantona is somebody who has positioned himself across various cultural situations over a diverse and interesting career. One of my sporting heroes growing up, he was the first person who showed me that a person can be good at both sporting and artistic pursuits at the same time. This multifaceted adroitness helped the Frenchman to become an icon within British and, specifically, Northern English sport.
Born in the port city of Marseille, based on the coast of the Mediterranean sea, Cantona grew up in a multi-cultural environment, with a great number of different people around him in his youth. His family were migrants to France, with his mother coming from the Spanish/Catalonian city of Barcelona, his maternal grandfather fought the armies of General Franco during the Spanish Civil War. Additionally, his paternal grandfather was Italian and came to France from Sardinia. This pluralistic background helped to shape his opinions on the positives of diversity and the benefits of migration. He has also gone on to campaign for causes that have included help for the homeless and anti-genocide causes.
Starting out with AJ Auxerre in 1983, he spent the first five years of his senior career based on the banks of the Yonne River, winning the Cup of the Alps in 1987. The following year he started a bit of a journeyman walk of life across the French league, turning out for, amongst others, Marseille, Montpellier and Nîmes Olympique. It was during these years that he developed a reputation for being having a fiery and tempestuous personality. As a young man he lashed out at opposition, fought with team mates and had an infamous falling out with French international colleague Didier Deschamps. Cantona reportedly dismissed the defensive midfielder as a water carrier, somebody who lacks creativity and simply nullifies the more beautiful aspects of the game. This seems to be a disliking for each other that has carried on over the years, with a lawsuit from Deschamps, against Cantona over controversial comments the retired forward made around the current national team manager’s squad selection choices being dismissed in 2020. Eric’s time playing in France came to an end whilst playing for Nîmes, when he threw the ball at a referee. At the disciplinary hearing conducted by the French Football Federation, where he was banned for one month, he walked up to each member of the committee, looked them each in the face and called them an idiot.
England beckoned with a transfer to Leeds United. He arrived in Yorkshire in January of 1992. Famously, Sheffield Wednesday had taken Cantona on trial, but manager Trevor Francis reportedly turned down the chance to sign the maverick forward as he had only seen him play on a synthetic turf. However, the wages the French international would have commanded from the club might have had something to do with it as well. His time at Leeds proved successful, winning the old English First Division (the top flight prior to the Premiership) in 1992. When manager Howard Wilkinson rang Alex Ferguson about the possibility of buying Manchester United’s Denis Irwin, he was turned down, but agreed to a transfer in the opposite direction of Eric Cantona. This is where he became an icon within England.
The Manchester United home crowd took to Eric Cantona like nobody had taken to him before. After arriving in November of 1992, it was in the industrial north west that he found a home away from home. His playing style, ethos towards the game and attitude regarding life in general helped him to become a firm fans favourite, gaining the nickname King Eric. It was also a time of cultural and societal change within England and Britain more widely. The Conservative Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Maggie Thatcher had been forced out of office in 1990 (much to the delight of many across the north of England). There were also several artistic shifts within the music industry during the 1990s, which saw several major bands come out of the greater Manchester area, some of which were a part of the BritPop generation. The Hacienda nightclub, which opened in the city during the early 1980s, but carried on through the following decade, became a starting point and even a springboard for some of these groups, including synth-pop and alternative dance band New Order who went on to write and perform the 1990 England World Cup song, World in Motion. The Premier league also broke away from the English Football League in 1992, creating a more fan friendly and engaging sporting spectacle for those in the stands and watching from their armchairs. All of these aided a sense of liberty from Conservatism and change for the better, as well as an eagerness for entertainment. Cantona duly stepped into a gap that was being created during this time period.
His playing style was an extension of his personality. An attacking player, who enjoyed dashes of flair and exuberance, he refrained from showboating. Each action was intended to have a useful impact on the game. A big man, standing over 6 foot tall, his physical strength also helped him, not only to play as an effective target player upfront, but also to fit into the British style of football during this era. Iconic moments included his winning goal in the 1996 FA Cup Final, taken well on the half volley in the 85th minute and a chipped goal against Sunderland, after beating off several players on the half way line and playing a one-two with a team mate. It was his simple celebration of this latter goal, where he just listened to and took in the joyfulness of the crowd that added something sweet and poignant about his relationship with performing as a footballer. However, Cantona’s favourite moment in football is apparently not a goal that he scored himself. It was an assist. In a match against Spurs, Cantona was involved in a bit of combination play just outside the penalty area. The use of the offside rule had compressed the game and the space was tight and Eric was facing towards the nearest touchline. As the ball was played into him he thought quickly, using the outside of his boot to chip the ball over the opposition defence for an on rushing Denis Irwin. Cantona cites the full back’s cleverness and his own trust for teammates for the creation of a piece of spectacle that was superbly ephemeral and ended with a slotted left foot finish.
There was also the infamous kung-fu kick on a Crystal Palace supporter, in January 1995. After being sent off against the London based club, at Selhurst Park, Cantona was abused by a racist and xenophobic member of the crowd. Matthew Simmons had run down several rows of stairs to abuse the Frenchman for the reason that he was French and a member of the opposition team. Emotions being high Cantona lashed out by jumping into the crowd, studs first and kicking the so-called fan. He was banned for eight months, find £10,000 by the Football Association and sentenced to 120 of community service by the British legal system. At the subsequent press conference, he responded to what presumably he thought of as the generally annoying presence of the press with poetic barbs aimed at their incessant and parasitic hounding, that was not about having thoughtful conversations about sport, but instead the actions of gossipers. Flanked by several men in suits he was quoted as saying, “When the seagulls follow the trawler, it is because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea”. He then promptly got up and left. Brilliant…
In a 14 year playing career he won the French league twice and domestic cup once. Whilst he was in England he added a further five league title to his medal haul, as well as two FA Cup victories. He played 45 times for France, scoring 20 goals and represented his country at the European Championships in 1992. He was even made captain for a brief period in the mid ‘90s. However, after his suspension from playing for the king-fu kick on the racist fan, he lost his spot to a young up and coming Zinedine Zidane and never played for his country again. Eric Cantona retired in 1997. He claimed that he had lost the love of the game and needed a new challenge. No longer wanting to devote himself to one passion, he moved towards others which fed his desire to perform. These days he is an active actor and musician. He famously played a caricature of himself in Looking for Eric, a British made film directed by Ken Loach, about a middle aged Manchester United fan dealing with a crisis in his life. Eric Cantona is a versatile and admired performer, who blurred the lines between football and art. He was a major reason why I feel in love with sport and wanted to pursue a career within it. He is also showed me that sports participation can come from a perspective and an ethos that’s still thought of as an alternative to the mainstream.
