Cantona interview: Aug 2006

he can become one of the best. United have now gone three seasons without winning the title.

Do you believe they can overcome Chelsea next season?
Yes I’m sure United will come good. They are building a team for the future whereas Chelsea are building a team for today and maybe the next one or two years. Year after year they will buy player after player after player and sometimes it will work and sometimes it won’t. I think you are stronger when you build a team or a generation of players who can play together for ten years. That’s why I believe United will win more Championships than Chelsea in the next ten years, I’m sure of that.

What similarities do you see between Sir Alex and Jose Mourinho?
They are both winners and psychologically very strong which is very important in terms of the influence they have on their players and the way in which they deal with the press and the provocation from the press. They are both very good at knowing what to say, when to say it and why they need to say it. That can be very important, perhaps even as important as the way their teams play because when they say things the media attention is on them and not the players, so the players can play without pressure.

How big a part does football play in your life nowadays?
When I was a player I used to watch a lot of games. I would watch opposition teams and players to help me improve. But now I only watch football for fun. I like to watch teams like United, Barcelona and Brazil who play the kind of football I like to see. I don’t want to waste my time watching bad games I don’t enjoy. People in England are lucky because French football is boring, incredibly boring. The best sixty French players play in countries like England, Spain and Italy.