Manchester United legend

Chapter 112 Chapter 110 Chapter [-] Cantona Retires

Cantona was not very excited when Manchester United won the league title once and celebrated on the pitch.

Jost walked up to Cantona and asked, "Eric, why do you look unhappy?"

Cantona: "I don't think I'm as passionate about football and the owners are more utilitarian than ever."

Jost: "You mean Bruce left the team and the boss didn't keep him?"

Cantona: "More than that, there are many things that make me feel that Manchester United has changed. It has become more commercial, cold-blooded, and less human."

Jost: "Maybe, but let's celebrate now!"

Cantona: "I'm not interested, you guys celebrate, have fun, I want to be quiet and think about something."

Jost returned to the celebrating team, but he always felt that Cantona had no motivation to play, as if he was about to leave the team.

Cantona wore a championship hat and returned to the locker room alone with flowers.

But in this jubilant moment, no one noticed Cantona's unusual.

Until Jost received a call from Cantona at night, telling Jost that he was going to retire, and recommended him as the team leader to Ferguson.

Jost tried hard to keep Cantona on the phone, hoping that Cantona could play with them for another season. After all, Cantona was only 31 years old, but no one can change the decision Cantona made.

For old United fans, especially those of Cantona, 1997 May 5 was a memorable, albeit bitter, day.

It was a Sunday, and on this afternoon, the Manchester United club officially announced that Eric Cantona had retired.

This news is more shocking than any transfer news.No one could guess why Cantona suddenly wanted to quit.What is even more surprising is that Cantona resolutely retired without any hesitation, regardless of any retention.

At the age of about 31, with his physical condition and competitive level that pays so much attention to his body and training, he can still play at Manchester United for at least 3 years.

Don't forget that Cantona was officially named captain of United just after Bruce left.

As a club that focuses on tradition like Manchester United, appointing a Frenchman as captain is an important decision.

For Cantona, he himself said that it is a great honor to be the captain of Manchester United, "I will guard this red tradition, even if it is crazier than me!".

No one expected that Cantona would announce his retirement after only one season as captain.At only 31 years old, he resolutely left the fans who loved him so much and chose to retire.

Cantona's decision to retire is likely to have originated from his dissatisfaction in the national team.

Compared with his popularity in the Premier League and Manchester United, Cantona will always be a marginal figure in the French national team and has never been taken seriously.

Except for Platini's preference for him, the previous French team coaches kept him at a respectful distance.

Especially after 1995, Cantona was hurt by the French national team's attitude of rejecting him.

In Jacquet's team, there is no place and name for Cantona at all.

The French team's passable performance in the 1996 European Championship also allowed Jacquet to completely block Cantona's return.

In this regard, Cantona's response was, "I announce that I will quit the French national team forever. I will not be with a group of monkeys and narcissistic ostriches."

For Cantona, who had a miraculous performance before, was rejected by the national team, even Ferguson was inconceivable, "Abandoning Cantona is definitely a loss for the French team. The only thing I am happy about is that Manchester United can welcome their captain with confidence."

The national team has become a dream, and the feat of conquering the British Isles is still underestimated by his compatriots.

For Cantona, the fun of football may only be to lead the club's team to conquer Europe, so as to declare war on the group of "stupid" Frenchmen.

After returning from the suspension period of the flying kick incident, Cantona's way of dealing with people seems to have been reborn. He hardly caused troubles outside the court. On the court, he was provoked and violated, and he kept as much restraint as possible. His response to those thorns was like a saint.

Despite this, his skills, his game attitude, and his commanding ability have not changed in any way.

It is precisely because of his almost miraculous performance and his own strength that Manchester United finally reversed Newcastle and regained the Premier League title under the huge gap of 12 points.

Even in the downturn in the 96-97 season, Cantona himself was proud. When he had to face accusations that his game performance did not reach the heights of last year, he had a deep sense of self-awareness.

In October 1996, Cantona told the media, "There is something wrong with me. Although I can't clearly explain what it is, I just don't understand why my state is so bad. However, I believe that things will pass soon."

In fact, the king's own performance is not as obvious as his own self-blame. He declared through his outstanding performance that he is still the ruler of the stadium and that he is still the soul of Manchester United.

In the end, relying on his commander, Manchester United won the championship two rounds ahead of schedule.

For Manchester United and the Premier League, Cantona has become a symbol and a representative figure. He is the best representative of the Premier League and the best spokesperson for Manchester United's temperament and spirit.

Therefore, in the past season, although Cantona also fell into a short-term slump, he quickly adjusted and continued to lead the team to complete the surpassing of all opponents in the league in peak form, and finally won two consecutive championships for the Red Devils.

This is Cantona, Cantona as the captain, Cantona wearing the great No. 7 jersey.

The king who is worshiped by Manchester United fans, and Cantona who has received extraordinary praise from the Premier League.

The French said that Cantona beat all the British in football in the field where the British are least willing to admit defeat!
In other arenas outside the Premier League, in France and European football, Cantona is facing more criticism and pressure.Conquering the English league was not a peerless achievement in European football politics at the time.

In addition to the Serie A that still maintains its glory, if you want to win a worldwide reputation, you must reach the top in the European arena and the World Cup.

Cantona has led Manchester United to the Champions League since 1993.

And he had to deal with criticism that he didn't have any decisive achievements in Europe and so on.

The recklessness of going to Turkey, the depression in the fight against Barcelona, ​​and the continuous elimination... Cantona's European competition resume is indeed not very colorful.

However, Cantona's heart is strong.In the 96-97 season, Ferguson was determined to hit the Champions League.

He bought new stars on a large scale, and the players of the 92 generation matured rapidly, so Cantona himself thought it was time to make a correct response to Europe.

Cantona had a clear sense of who he was, and he was more invested in Manchester United than in any other team.

Just in the past two seasons, Cantona not only played well himself, but also perfectly played the key role of "passing on".

It was under the influence of his self-confidence and pride that the teenagers in class 92 quickly grew into the pillars of Manchester United, and Giggs and Beckham gradually became the key players to help the team win.

To some extent, Cantona selflessly cultivated a group of his own successors for Manchester United.

And the self-reflection made Cantona himself more aware of what role he should play in the team. This kind of cognition and action transcends personal interests.

"Help on the horse and send you a ride." While delighted with the progress made by those young players, Cantona also felt that the mission and goal he pursued was rapidly approaching.

His mission is to lead Manchester United to a breakthrough in the Champions League.If you can climb to the top of Europe, it will truly prove to the world-"Cantona is the king of Manchester United, the king of the Champions League, and the king of France!"

Manchester United's Champions League journey this season may be considered a huge improvement for Ferguson and Manchester United fans, but for Cantona it is an unacceptable failure.

In the first game, Manchester United lost to Juventus at a huge disadvantage. Although Cantona was very sad, he did not despair.

In the second game of the group stage, Manchester United played at home. Cantona led the team to a 2-0 victory over Rapid Vienna. Even though Manchester United had to pay the price for the injuries of Johansen and Jost, Cantona still opened the door to victory for the team. "Cantona's light began to shine on the Champions League", this is the comment on UEFA's official website.

Waiting until the third group stage expedition to Turkey, Cantona led his teammates to beat Fenerbahce with the same score of 2-0 in the away game.

Cantona directed two goals and his magic left the Turks stunned.

In the fourth and fifth rounds of the group stage, Manchester United lost to Fenerbahce and Juventus one after another, and the qualifying situation fell into crisis.In those two games, Cantona fell into a state of extreme anxiety, especially when he played against Juventus at home. Cantona rarely scolded his teammates and ordered them to seize all the time to attack. He was like a completely burning sun!

Although they lost that game in the end, Manchester United created a lot of shooting opportunities in the game. In the second half, Manchester United once launched a mad attack on the old woman's defense, oppressing the opponent out of breath.

If it weren't for the real bad luck, Manchester United could have equalized the score and even overtaken the score.

Although he lost in the end, Cantona once again won the praise of the fans and European football. "Cantona is completely the commander of Manchester United. He made this team a strong fighting force and steadily suppressed Juventus. This is the demeanor of a strong man!"

Indeed, Cantona is full of aggressiveness, he is the unruly captain and the commander of the firepower, he has been trying to drive the offense and motivate his teammates, and he has indeed done this.

His efforts in the frontcourt also effectively drove the team's overall suppression and launched a crazy attack on the opponent.Cantona really exploded, his shot just missed it.

Fleet Street said, "Cantona didn't score, but his performance was the best in the game, no one."

When Manchester United was a guest in Austria for the last game, Cantona once again saved the Red Devils.

His goal, Giggs' goal and a world-class save by Schmeichel finally helped Manchester United beat Rapid Wien 2-0 and enter the last eight.

It's the semifinals!Manchester United's opponent was Borussia Dortmund, who later became the champion, and Manchester United was a guest for the first time.

United continued to play impressively and in control away from home, but Ferguson's men fumbled in front of goal, missing three great chances in a row: Butt hit the post, Cantona himself went wide from 15 yards and Beckham's chance was denied on the line.

But Dortmund seemed to have won the lottery. They turned out to hit Pallister with a shot and reflected it into the net!In the end, the opponent was economically defeated 1-0.

In the second round, Dortmund's Ricken scored with his first shot, giving the Red Devils a head-on blow.

But despite this, Cantona still did not give up. He shouted, "The game has just begun! We can do the task of scoring 3 goals", but no matter how hard Cantona tried, the opponent locked him firmly.Of course, Manchester United kept attacking, kept pressing the opponent, and created an unbelievable number of chances.

The most unfortunate chance came from Cantona himself, when Cole's cross found him six yards in the penalty area, but just before the equalizer, Jurgen Kohler blocked the ball and Cantona's shot hit him.In the end, fate gave up Cantona and Manchester United.

In the end, Dortmund won the UEFA Champions League-the team that was beaten by the Red Devils had the last laugh!
Cantona must have felt hurt.United weren't beaten by a great team, they just didn't take their chances.

No one will deny that Cantona has put all his heart and soul into it. He even puts more passion and fighting spirit in the Champions League than in the league.

Just in this season's UEFA Champions League, despite occasional setbacks, Cantona's bravery and persistence is the biggest reason to inspire all the Red Devils to never give up and keep fighting.

Just when Manchester United was in a passive position and could only sit and wait for other people's winks, Cantona used almost perfect games to escort Manchester United to continue the road to the Champions League.

And when almost everyone believed that Manchester United's reaching the quarter-finals of the Champions League was an acceptable and huge improvement, he even helped Manchester United completely defeat Porto with a dominant game and advanced to the semi-finals.Until he met Borussia Dortmund, until he had an advantage in two games but ended up losing 8-0, until the moment he accepted the defeat and took off his red jersey and left the field.

Cantona knew that his hard work for a season was ultimately in vain.

It's not that I didn't work hard, that I didn't have opportunities, or that my skills were inferior to others... It can only be said that fate abandoned Manchester United at that moment, and completely abandoned Cantona.

Manchester United still has enough opportunities, and Cantona himself is over 30 years old, is the future still as cold as before?
Manchester United, which has been so brave and diligent this season, is even a hair's breadth away. Who knows that there will be gods favoring them in the days to come?

So, Cantona made a decision at that time and practiced that decision without regret.

In this way, we had the thunderbolt of that Sunday.

(End of this chapter)