Dimitar Berbatov is a rare ray of sunshine

On Crystal Palace day, The Mirror go back a couple of decades to look back fondly on Eric Cantona’s favourite, and possibly greatest, moment. Alex Ferguson ended up riding pillion across Paris in the days after Cantona kicked a Palace fan who was spewing abuse, and quite right both Cantona and Ferguson were. It ended up being the making of Cantona and United, when they recommitted to one another and kickstarted their bath to the treble. Cantona showed the 1999 winners just how much practice, self-confidence and arrogance are essential to success. United could do with someone with the same talent.

One of the most absolutely clueless, hubristic and washed-up total clowns in football and punditry, Joey Barton, has said that Scott McTominay wants to play for Scotland because he wants summers off. This has reminded me that I said something similar last week, and I am ashamed to have had the same thought as Barton, because he is a dreadful contributor to society. I’m this close to resigning in embarrassment.

Jose Mourinho isn’t taken anything for granted in the race for top four. It’s depressing to realise that top four is all that drives the club these days. You imagine with a better period over Christmas they would have kept up their interest in the league for a while longer, but the way they appear to have largely given up is insulting to fans. That’s what football is these days: if you aren’t at the top of the league by November then you just give up and see what presents itself as an option in the summer.

And as the day draws to a close on a miserable note, let’s at least finish on a mini-highlight: Dimitar Berbatov has made fun of David James, his manager in India. Bye.