Not long after being appointed France captain
by new boss Jacquet, he was arrested in the
US, where he was scheduled to do media
work, for an altercation about accreditation
before Brazil’s World Cup semi-final against
Sweden. Then another miserable trip to Ibrox
followed; sent off in a pre-season friendly,
Eric would begin 1994–95 suspended.
Cantona was also banned for United’s first
four games in the Champions League group
stage, following that Galatasaray dismissal.
Thrashed 4-0 at Barcelona without him, the
Red Devils lost at Gothenburg on his return
and missed out on the knockout phase. In
the Premier League, however, he struck 12
times in 21 games – an even better strike
rate than the previous campaign.
Midway through January, in his first match
alongside new signing Andy Cole, he bagged
the winner against title rivals Blackburn,which hauled United to within two points of
the top. But then came the fateful game at
Crystal Palace, the red card for kicking Richard
Shaw, and a kung-fu assault on the fan who
hurled vitriol at him as he walked off.
“Sometimes when the red mist comes
down, we all make mistakes, and he paid
a high price for that one,” Bruce admits.
“I’m sure Eric regrets it – or maybe not! If you
asked him if he’d do it again, he’d probably
say yes.”
True to form, the man himself once told
FFT about his only regret from that incident.
“I didn’t hit him strong enough. I should
have punched him harder,” Cantona said.
“If I want to kick a fan, I do it.” Punch, hit,
kick – same difference, eh?
He was sentenced to two weeks in prison
but an appeal reduced his punishment to 120
hours of community service, which was spent
coaching kids at United’s training ground.
That appeal verdict produced possibly
football’s most famous 14-second press
conference. “When the seagulls follow the
trawler, it is because they think sardines will
be thrown into the sea. Thank you,” he
memorably declared, before getting up and
strolling out the room.
Cantona’s words baffled the world, his
United team-mates included. “Our reaction
was the same as everyone else – we hadn’t
a clue what he was on about!” Bruce laughs.The court drama surrounding Eric
Cantona’s kung-fu kick stretched
beyond the Frenchman – Matthew
Simmons got in on the act, too.
The Palace fan was hauled to
Croydon Magistrates Court and then
fined £500 for his role in the
Selhurst Park incident, found guilty
of threatening behaviour.
After hearing arguments that he
should also be handed a one-year
stadium ban, he didn’t respond well
- jumping over the bench and then
grabbing the prosecutor by their
neck. “This is a lie, I’m innocent
I promise, I swear on the Bible,”
Simmons shouted.
As police and court staff tried to
restrain him, he then battled his
way over to watching journalists,
calling them ‘scum’. Then only 21,
he was sentenced to seven days
in prison for contempt of court.
Simmons, who’d previously been
on National Front rallies, went on
to join the Territorial Army.THE PALACE FAn : WHAT HAPPENED NEXT
It wasn’t just Eric who had his collar felt after the kung-fu kick. S o did the recipient...THE
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