Eric Cantona

Eric Daniel Pierre Cantona (French: Éric; pronounced [e.ʁik dan.jɛl pjɛʁ kɑ̃.tɔ.na]; born 24 May 1966) is a French actor, director, producer, and former professional footballer. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation, Cantona is credited as having made Manchester United a dominant force in English football in the 1990s, and has legendary status at the club. A large, physically strong, hard-working, and tenacious player, Cantona combined technical skill and creativity with power and goalscoring ability. Widely occupied as a deep-lying forward, he was also capable of playing as a centre-forward, as an out-and-out striker, as an attacking midfielder, or as a central midfielder on occasion. Cantona played for Auxerre, Martigues, Marseille, Bordeaux, Montpellier, Nîmes, and Leeds United before ending his career at Manchester United, where he won four Premier League titles in five years and two League and FA Cup Doubles. He wore the iconic No. 7 shirt at Manchester United, and was known for turning up his collar – a trademark look. He is also affectionately nicknamed by Manchester United fans as "King Eric". Cantona won the league championship in seven of his last eight full seasons as a professional. At international level, he played for the France national team and scored 20 goals in 45 matches. He appeared at UEFA Euro 1992 and, in preparation for Euro 96, was appointed the nation's captain until a football suspension which resulted from an incident in January 1995. In 2003, Cantona was voted as Manchester United's greatest ever player by Inside United magazine. He was an inaugural inductee into the English Football Hall of Fame in 2002. The museum states that "the enigmatic Frenchman was one of the Premier League's most controversial players ever". At the Premier League 10 Seasons Awards in 2003, he was voted the Overseas Player of the Decade. Cantona was inducted into the Premier League Hall of Fame in 2021. In 2004, he was named by Pelé in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players. Charismatic and outspoken, set against Cantona's achievements in football was a poor disciplinary record throughout his career, including a 1995 conviction for the January 1995 incident – an assault on an abusive spectator – for which he received a two-week prison sentence (reduced to community service on appeal) and an eight-month suspension from football.