President Eric Cantona?
King Eric certainly. But President Eric?
The mercurial and enigmatic Eric Cantona is back in the news. Last night he has launched a bid for the French presidency, but President Sarkozy who has to seek re-election in late April does not need to lose too much sleep over the 45 year old’s campaign. Cantona does not, of course, have the backing of a political party.
Cantona has written to French mayors seeking their support and outlining his credentials for the post. He requires the backing of 500 elected officials by the end of February for a run at the top job.
His main manifesto pledge in the letter, which was printed in full in the left leaning Liberation newspaper, was to stand up for ‘the millions of families who have been forgotten’ and he also condemned the lack of opportunities for young people. Social injustice is clearly something which generates passion within the footballer turned actor.
Calling himself an “engaged citizen” he referred to his high level of sporting achievement and “artistic activities”.
This morning he revealed his ‘bid’ for the French Presidency was in actual fact a stunt to promote the work of a homeless charity which is working towards improving housing for the poorest in France.
The Abbe-Pierre Foundation, of which Cantona is patron, has today commented that the stunt had already added thousands of extra signatures to their petition.
‘We needed a high profile figure like Eric Cantona to bring attention to our campaign’ said their spokesman Patrick Doutreligne.
‘The sudden show of public support shows that housing an homelessness in a nationwide problem that merits more attention in the presidential campaign.’
A spokesman for Socialist presidential candidate Francois Hollande, has estimated that 150,000 social housing units need to be built per year to get on top of the problem but he was clearly unimpressed with Cantona’s methods.
In 2010 Eric supported the cause of bringing down the banks, and called on the French public to withdraw all of their money. The campaign was ridiculed and a total failure. It was subsequently revealed that a bank had paid his wife to appear in a television advertisement.
Not that any of this would bother someone as self-assured and as confident as Eric.
When questioned after Manchester United’s 4-0 victory over Chelsea in the FA Cup final, in which he scored two penalties, if he had felt any pressure stepping up to take the kicks, Cantona looked at the interviewer as if the very question was absurd. Of course he had not.
Before coming to play football in England, where he spent most of his career becoming a Manchester United legend, he had a fair share of disciplinary problems.
After several disciplinary problems in his early career in France, in December 1991 whilst playing for Nîmes, Cantona threw the ball at the referee for a decision he disagreed with. He was banned for a month by the French Football Federation whereupon Cantona walked up to each member of the hearing committee in turn calling each an idiot. The ban was increased to two months.
Cantona was disenchanted and announced his retirement from football on 16 December 1991. Michel Platini, the then French national team coach helped persuade him to change his mind, and the advice of Gerard Houllier and his psychoanalyst was to move to England.
His football legacy is in the hearts of the Old Trafford faithful where the brooding and arrogant figure of the sublimely talented Cantona is still adored at Old Traffic where he as known as the King, and sometimes even as God. He abruptly turned his back on United and on football in 1997 since which time he has indulged himself with beach football, and carved out a career as an actor.
He has had several acting roles, including the lead role in Ken Loach’s Looking for Eric.
The Old Trafford faithful still to this day sing a song in his honour set to the tune of The Twelve Days of Christmas. He has been voted United’s player of the century after he revived the side’s fortunes.
In 2003 Cantona was awarded the Premier League Overseas Player of the Decade Award. Of his premature retirement he said:
“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.”
In January 2011 Eric Cantona, agreed to make a surprise return to football, as a director of soccer for the New York Cosmos, the cult US team that are aiming to return to the US Soccer League and to revive the show business flavor of the team that was so apparent in the 70s and 80s. He fronts an English inspired attempt to restore professional football in the heart of the Big Apple.
Cantona’s most infamous moment is, of course, from January 1995 when he lashed out at a Crystal Palace fan with a kung-fu shortly after receiving a red card for a blatant kick at one of the Palace defenders. As he was walking off, he took offence to the abuse he was receiving, and his temper got the better of him.
Cantona's appeal survived this infamous moment of madness
Cantona was stripped of the French captaincy and banned from football for 9 months. He arrested and convicted of assault. He was initially sentenced to two weeks in jail but on appeal this was reduced to 120 hours of community service.
His press conference after the court hearing has become the stuff of legend. It was a magnificent piece of surreal theatre.
His statement was short, following which he stood up and abruptly left:
“When the seagulls follow the trawler, it’s because they think sardines will be thrown into the sea. Thank you very much.”
Last year Cantona admitted that the kung-fu kick was a “great feeling” and a memory he is happy for fans to treasure.
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