Eric Cantona To Return To Old Trafford For Soccer Aid

The King is back! Eric Cantona will once again set foot on the pitch at Old Trafford as a footballer. The Frenchman will form part of the World XI against England for Soccer Aid in June.

One player may never have had as big an impact on a side as much as Eric Cantona had on Manchester United. That might seem like a big claim but the enigmatic Frenchman did everything to back it up.

In 1992 Manchester United hadn't won a league title for 25 years. Sir Alex Ferguson had already been in his job as manager for six years without winning the league and then Division One became the Premier League and Fergie signed Cantona.

_{Cantona sent a brilliant message to Fergie after the Scot's recent health problems:}

The rest is history as the forward's character and personality coupled with his penchant for goals and his all round brilliance helped lead United to their first four titles as their era of dominance was kicked off.

Now Cantona will return to the place of his triumphs for Soccer Aid, the annual charity match for UNICEF held by Robbie Williams. The forward will play for the World XI against Williams' England side on June 10th and talking about the game the 51 year old said:

"There is no place like home. Knowing I am coming back to Old Trafford is a special feeling and I am looking forward to seeing the stands full of familiar faces.

"My message is this: Soccer Aid for Unicef is a game like no other because of the support you give it. I am coming back to make the June 10th match the best ever and I want you to join me. Let's make history together at Old Trafford again one last time."

The games has been played six times in the last 12 years but for the next three years it will be annual event at Old Trafford to be shown live on ITV.

Cantona will be joined by Usain Bolt, Clarence Seedorf, Robert Pires, Yaya Toure, Jaap Stam, Patrick Kluivert and Edwin van der Sar as well as a bunch of celebrities.

England's side seems somewhat less star studded with David Seaman, Phil Neville, Jamie Redknapp, Danny Murphy and Robbie Fowler being joined by Mo Farah and of course Ben Shepard.

Based on those teams the King will be victorious at Old Trafford, that's nothing new!

Topics: Football News, Manchester United, Soccer Aid, Eric Cantona, Old Trafford, Usain Bolt

Ryan Sidle

Ryan is a writer for SPORTbible. He covers all sport from football, formula one, cricket, rugby, tennis, athletics, mma and wrestling. He obviously hates YOUR football team and has no interest in synchronised swimming.

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