Eric Cantona has revealed the ‘ghosts of Manchester United‘s past’ inspired him to perform for the Red Devils after moving the Old Trafford in 1992.
The former France midfielder was speaking on the latest episode of BT Sport’s ‘What I Wore’, and discussed a collection of iconic shirts which have defined the United legend’s life and career.
On the show, Cantona picked out the United 1992 home shirt shirt as his favorite he wore during his career and spoke with pride about his time at the club, referencing the ‘energy’ former players gave him and the importance of wearing the number seven during his stay.
‘I don’t know how it happened but I arrived in Manchester United after Leeds’, he began.
‘I felt the step and I felt the ghosts of the past of Manchester United. Sometimes that can paralyse players, but for me it was helpful. I felt the energy of the ghosts and the past and it made me even stronger.
‘When I arrived in Manchester, Bryan Robson was number seven. So I played with a different number but then I went to seven because he was too old! I love this number.
‘The number I have on the back is important to how I feel. If I don’t feel good, I cannot play well, so when I wore this shirt for the first time it was like I had it forever.’
Cantona spoke of the importance of wearing the number seven during his time in Manchester
He picked up the number from Bryan Robson and helped make the shirt iconic at the club
Cantona was also asked the explain his feelings around the iconic black 1993-95 United away shirt, which he infamously wore when he kung-fu kicked a Crystal Palace fan, for which he received a nine-month ban.
The now-56-year-old joked about the fit, suggesting that he ‘got all [his] red cards’ at United wearing it, before going onto discuss the fan incident in greater depth.
‘I love this shirt’, he said. ‘I think when I got all my red cards I had this shirt! I had maybe three red cards. I love it.
‘The people can say anything and for years you don’t react and one day you react. We are just human beings, sometimes we are strong, sometimes we are not. I done it.’
The 56-year-old went onto discuss the famous 1993-95 black Manchester United away strip
Cantona famously kung-fu kicked a Crystal Palace fan at the game and received a nine-month ban for his actions
He returned from the ban to play against rivals Liverpool and received a hero’s reception from the United fans at Old Trafford before the game.
‘It was a great time’, Cantona said on his comeback. ‘I could have come back against another team but to come back at old Trafford against Liverpool is very special. It always is against Liverpool.’
Earlier on in the show, the former midfielder discussed his arrival in England with Sheffield Wednesday, before going onto play for Leeds.
He was a full French international when he made the move across the channel, but had to endure a trial in Sheffield despite his impressive pedigree as a player.
While Cantona admitted it is different for foreign players coming the Premier League now, he smiled while he explained the story of the move, describing the process of his arrival in England with Wednesday before moving to Leeds.
‘I didn’t know it was a trial!’ Cantona said on his time at Wednesday. ‘I thought I was there to sign and after a week they said I had to spend one more week on trial.
‘It tells a lot about the difference with the French players because I played for the French national team at the time and I was at Sheffield Wednesday and they said I was on trial. Now things change, there are maybe 60 players from France, you could have two or three teams of players who play in England now. But I was one of the good French players on trial at Sheffield Wednesday!’
He spoke about his move to England from France and how he had to endure a trial at Sheffield Wednesday despite being a full international
When shown the Leeds 1992-93 home shirt, in which Cantona scored the first Premier League hat-trick, he said: ‘In my time it was different with foreign players. I could walk in the street or go to the bar and nobody knew me. But after a few weeks I became a bit popular because we were a great team and we won the league.’
On the France 1986-90 home shirt, he added: ‘I wore a French shirt for the first time when I was 15. We were. A great generation of players, U21 European champions, beating England, the generation of Paul Gascoigne, then I played for the French national team.
‘I played 45 times for France and scored 20 goals which is not bad! Especially because I retired early. I played my last game just before I was banned for nine months.’
Cantona retired at 30 years old, leaving behind him an iconic legacy in English football
He admitted he ‘never thought about celebrations before the game’ when discussing his iconic reaction to scoring against Sunderland
Finally, Cantona spoke of the end of his Manchester United career, referencing his famous celebration against Sunderland in 1996, in which he chipped goalkeeper Lionel Perez before turning to the crowd and embracing the celebrations as he stood still.
He went onto leave United in 1997 and retire at the age of 30, ending his Red Devils career with 89 goals in 193 appearances for the club.
‘This was my last season’, he said after seeing the shirt.
‘I never thought about celebrations before the game. I never celebrated a goal in the same way because it is always social and a unique moment. Now you see players practice but for me I cannot react, it depends on the goal and the meaning of the goal, it depends on the pressure, the energy, everything. I never thought about it. It was a spontaneous reaction, it was a good one!’
Cantona was speaking before the Manchester derby on Saturday afternoon. Watch Man Utd v Man City exclusively live on BT Sport 1 this Saturday from 11:30am. BT Sport Monthly Pass is the flexible, contract free way to watch, for more info visit bt.com/sport.
