Eric Cantona explains how Man Utd rejected President of Football role | OneFootball

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Stretty News

·26 September 2022

Eric Cantona explains how Man Utd rejected President of Football role

Article image:Eric Cantona explains how Man Utd rejected President of Football role

Eric Cantona has revealed that Manchester United rejected his proposal to become ‘President of Football’ when the Frenchman lobbied the idea during Ed Woodward’s tenure.

Woodward resigned from his Chief Executive Officer role following the fall of the disgraced European Super League and since then, a host of changes have been made behind the scenes at Old Trafford.


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Darren Fletcher has taken on a more significant role in relation to on-pitch matters whilst John Murtough assumes responsibility as the Football Director.

The pair have been authorised to make decisions on football decision under Richard Arnold, who replaced Woodward when his notice expired in 2021.

Now, former Red and fan-favourite Cantona has revealed that he approached United with a view to becoming their ‘President of Football’ – an idea that was swiftly rejected by Woodward.

“Last year I proposed to the club to change their way,” Cantona said in an interview with The Athletic.

“Ed Woodward is great at marketing but not great at football. I think you have a chairman and should have a president of administration/marketing and then a president of football, who is in charge of all decisions in football.

“So I proposed to them to be ‘President of Football’. First I met Sir Alex Ferguson, to say this to him and know what he thought about it. And he thought it was a good idea. He introduced me to Mr. Woodward … I met him a few times. But they did not accept it!

“I said to myself: ‘For five years I will put everything on hold and concentrate 100 per cent on that’. And if I concentrate 100 per cent on that, then I can tell you, I would do it very well; very, very, very well.

“They did not want me! The fans have to know that I went and travelled to Manchester to give them the opportunity to succeed in the next decades. And they did not want it.”

SN’s verdict… The time period Cantona is referring to was a tumultuous time for United and understandably, he wanted something to change and thus offered his services.

Undeniably, the Frenchman knew what he was talking about and would not have proposed to take on a role with such importance if he was not confident of being able to help the club.

Under the Glazer family’s ownership, United have mostly opted to appoint internally and that’s what happened in this case.

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