It has been a long time since Manchester United were involved in a Premier League title race and there have not been many as dramatic as the 1995/96 season.
Manchester United regularly used to brush teams aside under Sir Alex Ferguson and that was the case during the 1995/96 campaign, with the Reds eventually crowned champions.
The league was won thanks to a hiccup from Newcastle United, which involved a collapse that saw the Magpies throw away the healthy lead they had at the top of the table.
Newcastle had a golden opportunity to win their first title since 1927 when they had to win against Tottenham and hope that Middlesbrough would beat Ferguson’s side.
But the Premier League title went to Old Trafford as United won 3-0 and Newcastle could only manage a 1—1 draw with Tottenham. It was a season to remember for several reasons, including Kevin Keegan’s ‘I would love it’ rant about Ferguson on live television.
Six days after clinching a third league in four seasons, United completed a league championship and FA Cup double after beating Liverpool at Wembley.
Eric Cantona’s screamer vs Arsenal sent Man Utd on their way
United would go head-to-head with Arsenal for league titles in the years that followed, but the Gunners had yet to start rebuilding their squad under Arsene Wenger, with Dennis Bergkamp brought in that summer.
They never looked like serious title challenges and finished fifth, but Arsenal were still a force to be reckoned with…
On this day 29 years ago, United went into a game against Arsenal with an unbeaten record since the beginning of the year. The Reds started the game strongly with sustained pressure as Roy Keane hit the post, but Ferguson’s men were unable to find the back of the net before the interval.
However, Old Trafford would be gifted to a moment of magic after the break.
In the 66’ minute, Arsenal failed to deal with a cross from Phil Neville before Eric Cantona pounced and smashed a half-volley past David Seaman from outside the box.
The three points kept United on top of the table and the Reds marched on to win the Premier League that season as Cantona yet again proved he was the catalyst in a young United side consisting of Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville and Nicky Butt.
The 1995/96 season brought many highlights as United became the first English team to win the double twice, with Cantona also inspiring United to an FA Cup final win over Liverpool.
Cantona record against Arsenal
The charismatic Frenchman faced Arsenal on seven occasions in the Premier League.
He won three of those matches, drawing as many and losing just one.
| Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals | Assists |
| 7 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
The screamer Cantona scored against Arsenal in 1996 was one of two goals he scored against the Gunners.
It was only after Cantona had left United that Wenger’s Arsenal really started clicking into gear.
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
