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Following up on the controversial story where both Eric Cantona and Karim Benzema accused French manager Didier Deschamps of being a racist, the former Manchester United forward stepped out to support Benzema in such a tough moment. Karim had publicly stated that Cantona is right about the racist claims he made, which triggered outrage in all of France and puts Benzema in a really delicate position.
This claim may end up getting him axed from the France national team for good, but apparently Karim doesn't really mind because all he wanted was to speak his mind. Cantona spoke to Liberation about this, he fully supports Benzema: "I am absolutely not surprised by Benzema's comments. I'd like to point out that - like me - he has at no point accused Deschamps of racism," said Cantona.
"He has only said that Deschamps' decision was influenced by the public opinion, which is the result of the current political climate in France. Benzema showed courage with his comments, because he is still playing and is still available for the national team. But it is only normal that he thinks like a French citizen before thinking like a player. He has responded to a certain problem."
"It is clear that when you discard a player like Benzema, you take away an entertaining player. For me, it was an unfair decision, so I asked questions about it. I don't care about the reaction to my comments. Controversies like this last 24 hours during which the morons speak up and then people move on. I said it was possible Benzema was left out because of what happened with [Mathieu] Valbuena. But that does not mean I cannot ask questions. The minister of sports and two members of the government wanted Benzema out of the Euros. That is enough for me to question the independence of Deschamps.
"Benzema was suspended in between regional elections. The mood has changed in France since Charlie Hebdo. There is a certain attitude toward people of north-African origins. But Benzema is presumed innocent until proven otherwise. If he is found innocent, he will still have missed the Euros. As for Ben Arfa, he is only guilty of being one of the best two or three best French players out there."
Finally, Cantona doesn't care if he gets sued by the France manager: "Deschamps seems to be willing to sue me. It will be the first time he moves from a defensive position into an attacking one... He will find out whether it's easy. Between the three of them, Deschamps, his agent and his lawyer, they should be able to see the difference between defamation and discussing a problem in a society. I don't have scores to settle. I just give my opinion."
Photo credit: Equipe de France
