William Prunier

Infobox Football biography
playername = William Prunier


fullname = William Prunier
dateofbirth = birth date and age|1967|8|14
cityofbirth = Montreuil
countryofbirth = France
height = convert|1.85|m|ftin|abbr=on
position = Defender
youthyears =
youthclubs = Auxerre
years = 1984-1993
1993-1994
1994-1995
1995-1996
1996
1996-1997
1997-1998
1998
1998-1999
1999-2004
2004
clubs = Auxerre
Marseille
Bordeaux
Manchester United (trial)
FC København
Montpellier
Napoli
Hearts
KV Kortrijk
Toulouse
Al-Siliya
caps(goals) =

37 (0)
02 (0)







nationalyears = 1992
nationalteam = France
nationalcaps(goals) = 1 (0)

William Prunier (born 14 August 1967 in Montreuil) is a French former footballer, who played in the centre back position.

Prunier was a product of a famous AJ Auxerre youth team which also included Eric Cantona, Basile Boli, Pascal Vahirua and Daniel Dutuel, all under the tutelage of Guy Roux. After spending many years at Auxerre, he later moved on to Olympique Marseille and FC Girondins de Bordeaux. He also earned 1 cap for France in August 1992, a 2-0 loss to Brazil. [ [http://www.histoaja.free.fr/joueurs/prunier.htm Histoire de l'AJ Auxerre, William PRUNIER ] ]

In the 1995-96 season, Prunier had a fleeting and forgettable tenure at Manchester United. Having bought out his contract with Bordeaux, he joined the Old Trafford club on a trial basis where he was reunited with Cantona. At the time, the manager Alex Ferguson had been looking for a continental-style defender with good passing skills. However, his arrival coincided with an injury crisis that saw the three first-choice centre-backs Steve Bruce, Gary Pallister and David May all unavailable. Prunier was hastily drafted into the first team even though Ferguson had originally intended to use him in reserve team matches only during his trial.

Prunier made his Manchester United debut against Queens Park Rangers on 30 December 1995 partnering Gary Neville in defence. [cite news | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19960101/ai_n9631863 | title=Prunier offers United a missing cutting edge | publisher=The Independent | author=Alan Nixon | date=1 January 1996 | accessdate=2007-11-05] He generally impressed in the match helping set up a goal for Andy Cole and hitting a powerful shot against the bar. His second game against Tottenham Hotspur on 1 January 1996, however, was a disaster for him and the club. With Peter Schmeichel injured in the warm-up and Denis Irwin also unavailable, he was part of a makeshift defence which conceded 4 goals in a humiliating loss. Prunier has ever since been made something of a scapegoat for the defeat. Despite the defeat, Ferguson offered him an extended trial, but Prunier declined and decided he would look elsewhere. [cite news | url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19960103/ai_n9632494 | title=Prunier quits United | publisher=The Independent | author=Alan Nixon | date=3 January 1996 | accessdate=2007-11-05]

After leaving Manchester United, Prunier moved on to FC København in Denmark and also had spells at Napoli in Italy and K.V. Kortrijk in Belgium before returning to France with Toulouse FC where he won the Ligue 2 title in 2003. After a brief spell in the United Arab Emirates, he retired from football in 2004 and is currently a coach at AS Cannes. On 4 February 2007, he appeared on Sky Sports giving an intro and his point of view on the 4-1 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur in 1996.

References