This Week in Football History: Cantona produces his masterpiece

Fergie's best ever signing?

In today's peek into the history books, Adrian North heads to December 1996 and an iconic goal from an iconic Frenchman...

December 21, 1996: Man Utd 5-0 Sunderland, Old Trafford

A statistical look at the Premier League career of Eric Cantona will often lead to the one word that is almost blasphemous when describing such an icon - over-rated.  

Cantona never scored more than 18 goals in a Premier League season. He only played three full and two half season for Manchester United between 1992 and 1997 and famously missed eight months of football for that infamous kung-fu kick at Selhurst Park in 1995.  

Yet the Frenchman remains as one of the most revered, beloved, and respected players in Premier League history, and rightly so.  

Last week I described Matthew Le Tissier as a man driven not merely by the will to win, but the will to entertain. Cantona was perhaps the best ever Premier League player to abide by this philosophy. The glory of a singular moment, rather than the glory of trophies and medals was paramount for Cantona. A point he made several times in the under-rated but excellent 2009 film Looking for Eric.  

This mentality, coupled with the fact he was a bloody good player, resulted in Cantona becoming United's most influential man during the first five Premier league seasons. So influential that one could rightly make an argument for the following claim: No Cantona = No Man Utd dominance.  

Two goals in the 94 FA Cup final vs Chelsea, a brilliant volley in the 96 FA Cup final against Liverpool, and countless goals of significant importance in every title run-in barring 94/95, the season he was banned.  

Cantona bizarrely took the decision to retire at just 30 years of age in June 1997 to pursue an acting career in which his best performance was when he played himself in the aforementioned Looking for Eric.

Whatever the actual reasons behind Cantona's early retirement the guy was still damn good enough to lead United to a fourth Premier League title during 1996/1997. And it was during a routine Manchester United thrashing of Sunderland on December 21, 1996 that Cantona produced his masterpiece.  

Twisting past a couple of bemused Sunderland players, Cantona played a one-two with Brian McClair before chipping the ball over the helpless Lionel Perez in Sunderland's goal. 

Of course, no one actually remembers the goal. Only a player like Eric Cantona could pull off such a ridiculous piece of skill only to better it with his own celebration.  

With his collar fully flicked up, Cantona slowly turned around a full 360 degrees to bask in the adulation of the Old Trafford support, all the while with a completely stonewall impression on his face. The first glimmer of emotion Cantona gave was a small smirk when McClair ran up to hug him. 

Cantona knew the quality of the goal he had just scored, he knew how beloved he was by everyone inside Old Trafford, and most of all, he really knew just how good a footballer he was. And for a moment, just after he had casually chipped the keeper, Eric Cantona decided to just take it all in - to revel in the glory of such a brilliant singular moment.  

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Was this Cantona's best moment in a United shirt? What are your favourite Cantona memories? Let us know by commenting below or tweeting @Betfair...