Remembering The Time A Manchester United Player Kung-Fu Kicked A Fan

With all this focus on the unimaginably dumb scandal that has swallowed the brains of the stupids in the sports world, it's good to remember that there was once a time when people were justifiably shocked at behavior during a sporting event. Like the time Manchester United great Eric Cantona jumped into the stands and ran at, jump kicked, and punched a heckling fan in the middle of a game.

The notorious Cantona Kick game occurred 20 years ago this Sunday. It remains the most hilariously insane moment to have ever happened in such a high-profile sporting event, topping even Luis Suárez's bite during this past World Cup and the NBA's Malice at the Palace.

The British press naturally has a few retrospectives. The Mirror has collated some anecdotes from those in attendance both on the pitch and in the stands. They also dug up their front page from the day:

Here's some old BBC coverage from the next day, which puts the act and Cantona's larger tendency for scummy behavior in some context:

The BBC has even more quotes from those involved in the event and its aftermath, including when Cantona and United's head of security sat together in a prison cell and laughed about the whole thing while eating McDonald's that a guard had picked up for them.

You should really check it all out, as both a reminder of one of the most fascinating sports moments of all time and as a convenient distraction from the stupidity of what passes for a scandal today.

[ Mirror | BBC]