If you ask any knowledgeable football fan when Eric Cantona retired, the answer you get will generally be 1997. Wrong. Cantona had actually retired way back before hed even kicked a ball in English football. Having had yet another controversy in December 1991, when playing for Nimes he threw the ball at the referee after a questionable decision, Cantona was again in hot water with the powers that be. The FFF called Eric to a disciplinary meeting and gave him a one month ban. One month? Thats not all that bad, right? Well The King thought differently. As only Eric Cantona could do, he proceeded to walk up to ever single member of the hearing committee and individually call them an idiot. The ban was promptly upped to two months. Even more incensed, Cantona duly announced his retirement from all football on 16th December, 1991. It would take the words of Michel Platini to talk Eric Cantona back into the beautiful game, and he then would search out a new club in England at the advice of Gerard Houllier.