Cantona returns to Manchester, as a singer

Chest out, one arm raised, the artist descends a staircase to join the stage. Black hat and long coat, white shirt and red pants. Spectators immediately recognize his characteristic approach. “I had never attended a concert like this. He has a real presence, such panache. To quote Eric: ‘the press said I was the greatest and that’s the case’!”

In his deep and gravelly voice, Eric Cantona performs his songs, most in English, a few in French. And his poetry disconcerts some fans: “Unusual. I didn’t understand most of the songs. I’ll never see a show like that again, that’s for sure! He’s more than a footballer. He’s Eric.” After an hour of concert, he allows himself an encore for a love song to his supporters, those of Manchester United. “It was fantasticreacts one of the spectators. He is a poet, he speaks of the world, of peace, of love, of those he has lost. We love it. Eric the King!” “The King” was his nickname when he played in Manchester.

This decidedly unique concert ends with a room of 500 people singing at the top of their lungs. Not the evening songs, which she doesn’t know yet, but a hymn to Eric, one of them.