Was Cantona the Best Striker to play under Ferguson

Zen

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Sparky_Hughes said:
An excellent and well made point, apart from the fact you could not be more wrong if you were the professor of wrongness, at wrong university who is currently lecturing a class on how to be wrong.
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So I'm guessing you think Rooney barely scratches the top 10 then? Otherwise I couldn't be as wrong as you say....in which case it's pointless debating with you anyway, since ironically you couldn't be "more wrong if you were the professor of wrongness, at wrong university who is currently lecturing a class on how to be wrong."
 

Randall Flagg

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adexkola said:
I was a little kid during this period, but it seems losing Schmichael for a European semifinal would have been a big blow to any team.
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He injured himself either earlier that day or in the warm up, it was a massive loss, we always struggled without him
 

Widnes

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Randall Flagg said:
I cannot see how anyone can believe that assuming you are old enough to have enjoyed Eric's career with us
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I suspect he possibly wasn't although I could be wrong, Rooney I think we can all agree is a fantastic player and if he stays with us the long term I think he will probably break Sir Bobby Charltons goal scoring record with the club and he would then without question be remembered as one of our greatest ever players and history will probably remember him in higer regard to Cantona but anyone who watched us in the early to mid 90's will surely remember Eric as the king, for a very big man he could glide along the pitch and play with such beauty. With him on the pitch football was just a joy to watch and anything seemed possible for United back then, so sad he never fot a Champions League winners medal but I have no doubts he would have done had it not been for the foriegner rule and in my opinion was the best in the world during the mid 90's
 

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I would say Eric... in fact, I would say Eric by a comfortable distance.

After him you're looking at one of Hughes, Rooney or Ruud

And after them Cole, Solskjaer, Sheringham, Yorke, McClair(?)
 

Sparky_Hughes

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Zen said:
So I'm guessing you think Rooney barely scratches the top 10 then? Otherwise I couldn't be as wrong as you say....in which case it's pointless debating with you anyway, since ironically you couldn't be "more wrong if you were the professor of wrongness, at wrong university who is currently lecturing a class on how to be wrong."
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Actually he comes in quite comfortably at number 5 for me.

1: Cantona
2: Law
3: Van Nistlerooy
4: Hughes
5: Rooney
 

Zen

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So fourth under Fergie then.....so I can't be as wrong as you made out, but I'll stick to me being right and you being wrong imo.
 

Sparky_Hughes

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Zen said:
So fourth under Fergie then.....so I can't be as wrong as you made out, but I'll stick to me being right and you being wrong imo.
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The problem with a question like this is it is ENTIERLY based on opinion so there is no diffinative answer.

(You are still wrong) :D
 

KM

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How would you feel if you saw on television that someone you used to work with was planning to become president of their country?

Surprised, maybe, but then maybe you didn't work with Eric Cantona like me.

I saw his stunt this week and thought, 'That's Eric'. He's his own man and always has been.

Nobody had a clue what he was going to do next, from jumping in the crowd to kick a fan, to retiring from football at the peak of his fame.

Most of the United team lived in big houses in south Manchester, Cantona lived in a rented three bedroomed semi-detached house in an area none of us had heard of.

Cantona is from Marseille and is not afraid to fight against what he sees as injustice. He grew up in a cave.

Read that last sentence again. A cave. So it is not surprising that poor housing has always been close to his heart and that was his publicity gimmick when he announced he was running for president this week.

Cantona was a mass of contradictions.

He was usually a quiet, private man, on the outside of the dressing room looking in. Yet he was a happy man, always looking to socialise, always polite and friendly.

He was not aloof, nor arrogant. He pretended that he could not speak English when it suited, but spoke it near perfectly at other times.

David May, our teammate, used to adopt a French accent and say: "Today you iz speak Engleesh. Eric? Or no speak Engleesh today?"

Cantona would smile at that one. He loved the crack in the dressing room and did not mind somebody having a joke at his expense.

The same May was completely in awe of him, however.

He used to share a room with Cantona and felt like he was in the company of the king.

May was frightened of snoring and felt it was rude to keep the light on when the king decided it was time to sleep.

If Cantona wanted to sleep at eight, then May slept at eight without any complaints.

We all respected Cantona because of his ability as a footballer. He was probably the best in England at the time, with an aura that only grew over the years.

When he had finished his ban for the kung fu kick at a fan in 1995, he was one of the most famous men in the country.

That meant opponents afforded him more respect in England, an extra yard that allowed him space to exploit.

He did not get the same respect in Europe and was less effective.

Everyone was very fond of Cantona and happy for him to be the club captain, a role he took on with enthusiasm when it came to organising social events.

We used to have a team get together when things were not running smoothly and heads needed to be banged together.

Cantona would be the first one there.

If there was a dress code then he ignored it. At one club function we all turned up dressed like penguins in suits. Eric arrived in a cream jacket with red trainers.

We thought Sir Alex Ferguson, the manager, would go crazy at him. Instead he told him that he looked wonderful.

One rule for us, one for Eric! Nobody objected.

Nobody shouted at Cantona on the field either. We let him work his magic and it was a privilege to play with him. Nobody, that is, except for Roy Keane.

I think Keane decided he'd had enough of the reverence and he would treat Cantona the same as he treated everyone else - by moaning at them if they gave the ball away.

On the rare occasion that Cantona misplaced the ball, he had Keane shouting down his ear. He didn't seem to mind because it showed Keane's absolute will to win.

Cantona had a reputation for losing his temper and we had all seen the television images where he clashed with officials, opponents and fans, but I only saw him lose his temper with a teammate once.

Peter Schmeichel, our goalkeeper, slid into him in training. Cantona was not happy, lofted up his 6ft 2ins, barrel-chested frame and pointed his index finger at the big Dane. "You!" he said. "Why always you? Why? Why?"

Schmeichel did not reply. He would not normally shirk confrontation, but I think he decided that he would not slide in on Cantona again.

Cantona may not become French president, but he has got people talking about an issue close to his heart.

I have no idea what he will do next and I expect the unexpected.

It seems to be that he is enjoying life, whether it's playing beach soccer or acting, working for the New York Cosmos or causing a stir in French politics.

I don't think you can knock anyone for that.
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Yes, Eric Cantona can - The National

Andy Cole on Eric Cantona, Excellent Article I thought. Does anyone else agree with Cole's theory about why Cantona didn't work in Europe?
 

Ixion

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I think you can gurantee Rooney will be giving his all too, especially when things aren't going well, but Sparky had the knack of scoring vital goals just when we needed them.
 

Spoony

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Cantona wasn't a striker. How old are some of you lot? Law, Taylor and Ruud - best three number 9s to've played for United.
 

Name Changed

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Spoony Youngblood said:
Cantona wasn't a striker. How old are some of you lot? Law, Taylor and Ruud - best three number 9s to've played for United.
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Well are we talking about strikers or forwards? I think the thread is really about forwards, despite the title.

Billy Whelan would have been right up there (from what I have read) had it not been for his tragic death.

If it's about no 9s only, then Law is no 1 in my opinion. For Ferguson's term of management, then Ruud.
 

Spoony

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Name Changed said:
Well are we talking about strikers or forwards? I think the thread is really about forwards, despite the title.

Billy Whelan would have been right up there (from what I have read) had it not been for his tragic death.

If it's about no 9s only, then Law is no 1 in my opinion. For Ferguson's term of management, then Ruud.
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No idea, but I presumed strikers as in number 9s.
 

Brwned

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Spoony Youngblood said:
Cantona wasn't a striker. How old are some of you lot? Law, Taylor and Ruud - best three number 9s to've played for United.
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Was Law a no. 9 Spoony? Here's a few screenshots of the lineups back in the day:











Looked no more of a 9 than Rooney, for example. It has him down as playing as an inside forward and that's how it looked to me too. Played there for the Rest of the World in the FA Centenary match too, in behind Puskas. This was before Herd got injured and left though, so he might've become 9 in the second half of his United career.
 

Randall Flagg

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I think some of those formations prove why it is almost impossible to compare football in modern times to the 60's
 

Sultan

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Brwned said:
Was Law a no. 9 Spoony? Here's a few screenshots of the lineups back in the day:











Looked no more of a 9 than Rooney, for example. It has him down as playing as an inside forward and that's how it looked to me too. Played there for the Rest of the World in the FA Centenary match too, in behind Puskas. This was before Herd got injured and left though, so he might've become 9 in the second half of his United career.
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Law was a pure poacher. Incredibly brilliant!
 

Red Dreams

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how did Law get into this?

thought it was strikers under Fergie.

Law was not called the King for no reason. None better imo. Next would be Ruud.

As for Cantona, I never saw him as an out and out striker....but when he played you had the feeling something magical could happen anytime.

..just a huge influence on the whole team....
 

Gazza

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I think van Nistelrooy was the best striker to play under Ferguson.

But I would have Eric in my team ahead of him and possibly a few more.
 

Ole's_toe_poke

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Ruud was clearly the best striker.

I'd classify Cantona, Ronaldo etc. as forwards rather than strikers. In terms of ability, Ronaldo over Cantona. In terms of long term impact and general sexiness Cantona.
 
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