Cantona a fan of "intelligent" Mourinho

Posted Sunday, March 24, 2013 by Foxsports.com

Manchester United legend Eric Cantona has sung the praises of Real Madrid manager Jose Mourinho.

Cantona a fan of

The former Chelsea manager was in the headlines recently for openly berating FIFA's Ballon d'Or voting policy and accused the sport's governing body of irregularities in awarding the 2012 Coach of the Year to Vicente Del Bosque, instead of him.

However, Cantona told Le Matin that Mourinho was the sole reason why he followed the performances of Real Madrid.

"Barcelona are one of the few teams that interest me and of course Manchester United. And then there's Real Madrid, because they have a coach like Mourinho, I'm not a fan of his style of play, but he has an amazing personality. He is very intelligent, has incredible charisma and a rather special way of managing things. He says that a coach needs to be an actor and I agree with him," Cantona stated.

"It's important not to always show your emotions when you're surrounded by your players. It's all about what the players need to see and need to hear. Will it benefit the team or not when their coach enters the dressing room frustrated and throws around teacups? It all depends on the situation and Mourinho knows exactly how to behave in every situation."

The former French forward also believed that Mourinho's larger-than-life personality was simply a show put on for the media, in order to draw away the spotlight from his players.

"He always draws attention to himself. Not just because of his ego, but because he wants to take the pressure off his players," Cantona pointed out.

"People are talking about Mourinho when there's a team with world champions. I really admire what he does."