Before William Saliba (Arsenal), other French people had a song in their honor in England

Author of an excellent start to the season punctuated by a superb goal, Saturday at Bournemouth (3-0)in the Premier League, William Saliba (21, 5 caps) was celebrated by Arsenal supporters in the form of a parody of the song Tequila (des Champs, 1958).

Before the former OM central defender, several other French players, from Arsenal or elsewhere, also had their song. We detail here the most emblematic of these “Frenchies” and the songs that have been attributed to them.

Éric Cantona the “King”, magnified at MU

The famous song Ooh, Ahh! Cantona! Say Ooh Aah Cantona! resonated thousands of times between November 1992 and 1997. This is the period when Eric Cantona, whom Manchester United supporters nicknamed the “King”, delighted them by putting their club back in the spotlight, with four league titles (1993, 1994, 1996 and 1997), two FA Cups (1994, 1996) and three Community Shields (1993, 1994, 1996).

Patrick Vieira praised at Arsenal … and at Crystal Palace

To the tune of the famous Italian song Volare, created in 1958 by Domenico Modugno Franco Migliacci and notably popularized later by the Gipsy Kings, Arsenal fans praised Patrick Vieira, whose long stint as a defensive midfielder from 1996 to 2005 was marked by three Premier League titles (1998, 2002 and 2004) and three FA Cups (1998, 2002, 2005). ” He plays for Arsenal! (he plays for Arsenal), He Comes from Senegal! (he comes from Senegal) Vi-ei-ra oh, oh, oh, oh, Vi-ei-ra, la-la-la-la ! still echoes in his head today.

And this, even if he is now the coach of Crystal Palace, where the supporters sing a new song in his glory:

David Ginola celebrated in Newcastle and Tottenham

” Yes we are the world’s most passionate fans (We are the hottest supporters in the world) And we look real cool ‘cos the Geordies rule with (And we look really cool ’cause we rule the roost)Ginola, La-la-la Ginola La-la-la Ginola, He’ll score us a goal-a!!! (He will score a goal for us)” From 1995 to 1997, Newcastle supporters sang this song to the glory of the whimsical and sometimes fantastic striker David Ginola (17 caps, 3 goals), who was then at the top of his game, especially in his first season (1995-1996), where the Magpies challenged Manchester United to the end for the league title.

At Tottenham too, where he played from 1997-2000, with a League Cup won in 1999, “El Magnifico” aroused the admiration of the fans and inspired them with a very colorful song that we cannot translate here and where. they compare him very favorably to David Beckham, who was playing at Manchester United at the time.

Olivier Giroud glorified at Arsenal

Current AC Milan striker Olivier Giroud (35, 112 caps, 48 ​​goals) scored 105 goals in 253 matches with Arsenal (in all competitions) between 2012 and January 2018, winning three FA Cups there (2014, 2015, 2017). At the Gunners, he also won a superb song from the supporters on the very famous Beatles song Hey Jude (1968).

Thierry Henry is worth 228 goals and… 50 Cent at Arsenal!

Thierry Henry, who is quite simply the best player and top scorer in the history of Arsenal (228 goals in 376 matches from 1999 to 2007 then in 2012) – where he won two league titles (2002, 2004) and three FA Cups (2002, 2003, 2005) – was celebrated on a rap track by 50 Cent titled PMP (2003).

The supporters sing in particular to the glory of the top scorer in the history of the Blues (123 selections, 51 goals): Now if you come on down to Highbury (Now if you come to Highbury), You can see Thierry Henry (you can see Thierry Henry there), He is the best player you will ever see (He’s the best player you’ll ever see in your life), Thierry-erry Henry. »

Dimitri Payet, a beloved time at West Ham…

Between his two stays at OM (from 2013 to 2015 and since January 2017), Dimitri Payet (35 years old, 38 caps, 8 goals) spent only eighteen months at West Ham (15 goals and 23 assists in 60 matches played in all competitions). Admittedly, he was no longer really popular when he forced himself to return to Provence.

But from October 2015, the Reunionese striker was entitled to his song, which has remained in the memories: “We’ve got Payet, Dimitri Payet! I just don’t think you understand. He’s Super Slavs man, he’s better than Zidane. We’ve got Dimtri Payet! » (We have Payet, Dimitri Payet! I don’t think you understand. He’s the man from “Super Slav” [Slaven Bilic, l’entraîneur de West Ham à l’époque], he is better than Zidane. We have Dimitri Payet! »).

N’Golo Kanté in the hearts of Blues fans

Arrived at Chelsea in 2016 and decisive in the conquests of the club since (the Champions League 2021, the European Super Cup 2021, the Europa League 2019, the Club World Cup 2022 and the title of champion in 2017), N’ Golo Kanté (31, 53 caps, 2 goals) quickly won over Blues fans.

They therefore regularly sing this song in his honor: N’Golo Oh! Kante will win you the ball, N’Golo, You’ve got the power to know, You’re indestructible, Always believe in, N’Golo oh!.. » (N’Golo Oh, Kanté will recover the ball from you, N’Golo, You have the power to know, you are indestructible, we still believe in… N’Golo).