ERIC, FERRAN, HARRY, JAVIER, CARLOS, TAYLOR, BENEDICT, DARREN, JA RULE

Eric Cantona scored his first goal in the English League  on Feb. 29, 1992, over a month after signing for Leeds United from French side Nimes. After coming off the bench against Luton Town, Cantona managed to open his account and lay on an assist in a 2-0 victory for his new side, who the surly France forward helped propel to the final English First Division title before the top tier rebranded and relaunched as the Premier League for the 1992-93 season. 

Ferran Tores was born on Feb. 29, 2000 which, assuming the Barcelona forward has only been able to celebrate his birthday every four years since, technically makes him seven years old today -- surely the secret to his youthful appearance.

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=10153397954022746

Meanwhile, Harry Kewell put in a special performance, by scoring for Liverpool in a 2-2 draw against former club Leeds United at Elland Road on Feb. 29, 2004. 

Managerial record by team and tenure

Team	From	To	Record
			P	W	D	L	Win %
Crawley Town	23 May 2017	31 August 2018	57	18	12	27	31.58
Notts County	31 August 2018	13 November 2018	14	3	4	7	21.43
Oldham Athletic	1 August 2020	7 March 2021	41	17	6	18	41.46
Barnet	10 June 2021	20 September 2021	7	0	2	5	0.00
Yokohama F. Marinos	1 January 2024	Present!!!	4	2	1	1	50.00
Total			123	40	25	58	32.52

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nexFarRI-lI

Kewell then staked his claim to be for ever known as football's "Mr. Leap Year" by scoring for Australia on Feb. 29 2012. The Socceroos swept to a dramatic 4-2 win over Saudi Arabia in a World Cup qualifier with a late three-goal flurry that ended the latter's hopes of reaching the 2014 tournament in Brazil. 

Leap Day in 2008 brought with it a merciful end to a controversial and drawn-out transfer saga that had begun the previous November. Javier Mascherano finally completed his permanent move to Liverpool from West Ham, having previously been on loan at Anfield for over a year. The deal had been held up for months due to legal complications with Mascherano and the third-party ownership of his economic rights, under which he had joined West Ham United two years previous from Brazilian side Corinthians alongside compatriot Carlos Tevez. 

However, things were eventually resolved and the Argentina international's £18 million switch was ratified. Shortly afterwards, FIFA, UEFA and the Premier League took steps to ban third-party ownership entirely. He isn't the only professional footballer to have been born on a Leap Year Day; in fact he shares his birthday with a select group that includes former United States international Taylor Twellman (born in 1980) and World Cup-winning Germany midfielder Benedict Howedes (1988).

Crystal Palace hero Darren Ambrose

was also born on Feb. 29 in 1984, which means he has the esteemed honour of sharing his birthday with none other than hip-hop star and Fyre Festival founder Ja Rule. (and all the others mentioned above!!)