Dimitar Berbatov, who was the Premier League’s top scorer last season, has barely got a game this season, with Wayne Rooney, Danny Welbeck and Javier Hernandez all head of him in pecking order.
Despite this, he’s scored 7 goals in the 10 appearances he’s made in the league and is waiting for his opportunity to score more.
“It’s just about being ready,” Berbatov said. “We have a big squad and you know sometimes you are not going to play. It’s sad and it’s painful but you need to be strong and be prepared for when your team-mates need your help. We are a team and we want to win together. Every time I have played I think I have done well. I’m ready and waiting whenever the boss gives me a chance to show my quality and deliver. I want to do as much as I can to help us win the title.”
Man Utd News 24/7
We seriously need to give him some game time. He cost THIRTY MILLION. FFS.
I really can’t figure out why he’s not getting games. Still I’m not the only one.
Roll in 20
any1 interested in writing for a sports website
contact – waqar_91@hotmail.com
The cost has nothing to do with it, he’s a sublime technician, a beautiful footballer, BUT he has no positive juju – no traction – when it’s big game time. The double miss v City FA last year was the end of him, the brace against Blackburn and still on the losing side just confirms that. I appreciate his loyalty and can only admire his determination to stay and succeed, but the truth is that he drains the pace and direction – particularly out of our last minute Plan B revivals – and this is why he is not a United player
I cannot understand how Chicarito gets a game ahead of Berbatov. Even Wellbeck has had numerous opportunities and has missed a bagful of chances.
I understand the need to give younger players a chance but I would rather they earnt their spots.
We have far to many players unable to hold the ball and ‘see’ a pass, and way to many passes are being turned over and putting the team under pressure.
It must be time to give Dimi a decent run of games.
He really doesnt deserve this, he shouldve atleast played a part against Bilbao.
Sure he may not be as prolific as Hernandez nor as energetic as Welbeck but he offers much more to the game than both combined. He did drag us to the title last season.
Maybe time to bring him back for the West Brom game. Danny’s played alot of games lately. Hernandez is a passenger, when there’s no service to him. Berba has been patient. Lets give him some game time.
He really does deserve better. He has missed chances but so have other strikers, and he definitely is magnificent against lesser teams when the pace of the game tends to be slower. He holds up the ball beautifuly and apart from the period at the beginning of the season when we were playing a much faster game, i think he could have slotted in at any point as a second striker. He might need a couple of games to get going but he has never been provided that opportunity. A class act.
Very humble and skillful,sometimes you need people who can hold onto the ball(last game comes to mind)in order to slow the fast paced game of the opposition.
@everyday i disagree. You do not spend thirty million pounds on ONE man to put him on the bench and make him the FOURTH choice striker in the team. His price tag plays a BIG role in why he should be put to the best use in the team.
Berba is a class act but the simple truth is he doesnt dove tail with Rooney and some will disagree but Rooney is irreplacable. As such the better options along side him are Danny and Chico as they play on the shoulder and work hard to panic defenders.
What i cant understand though is why Berba wasnt playing on Thursday that seemed crazy as if Rooney gets injured Berba is a must.
In essence Berba looks like fourth choice but thats not true he is second to Rooney and Hernandez is second to Welbz.
I think Berb deserves more game time than Chicarito, his allround game is just far better. He actually contributes something special to the play of our team. How many times have you seen him playing a ball through the opponents defence and ripping them apart by doing so? He’s just class. I love that bloody Mexican but in terms of control and passing he’s got a lot to learn from the Berb. If you consider there’s only one or two good years left in this guy I think it’s a real shame he can’t play week in week out. Still think he should be Rooney’s #1 partner up front.
This lad deserves so much more credit. After Scholes and Giggs he’s my favorite United player.
Great player and a top talent, it’s really sad that he sticks to the bench though
Dannysoya
I agree with you a lot! But with top players like Rooney, Hernandez and welbeck around, of course it will be difficult for him to get some playing time. Now welbeck and Hernandez are young so they need to get some playing time.
Michael Owen must also get some minutes once he gets back from injury which will mean it will be even longer before we see berba play again! We can’t sell Jim though but sir Alex needs to play him more
Him*
Rational Vs Emotion is a different thing, im sorry but Rooney and Berba should not play up top together they are too similar in positioning, both drop deep. I love Berba but all in honesty has never really cemented his place in the team. He has mercurial brilliance at times but at others which is a lot when he plays a run of games is too frustrating.
Rooney and Welbz are the best fit right now i dont know how anyone could disagree with that if im honest. I will love Berba endlessly more than Rooney but who would you have in your team?
medumtum @ 14:50 ” i think he could have slotted in at any point as a second striker.”
Exactly, BUT he’s always going to be “second fiddle” to TheWayneBoy as “second striker” or “withdrawn striker” – or whatever you call it. When they play together, Dimmy gets in the way of TheWayneBoy. He’s not a lead-the-line guy and he’s just not enough of a contributor as a defence-from-the-front guy – something that gets neglected in comparing Dimmy with both Chicharito and DannyTheLad.
Dakduivel @ 15:12: “I love that bloody Mexican but in terms of control and passing he’s got a lot to learn from the Berb.”
What ? Chicharito and Dimmy play two VERY different games. They’re really chalk-and-cheese – except that they’re both called “strikers”. PLUS – Chicharito needs service which has been VERY hit-or-miss this season.
at giggs12
I’d pick Berbatov anyday, yes he may be frustrating at times but he does bring that smile on your face with moments of brilliance. Who can forget that skill against West Ham in his first season, the hattrick against Liverpool and the effortless touches and skills he makes in almost every match.
Plus he has never complained nor said anything bad about the club since sitting on the bench despite being the most expensive signing and top goal scorer.
Didnt Rooney have his best season at Utd with Berbatov alongside him before the world cup?
Got to disagree the cost has nothing to do with it. Just because he cost us 30 million doesn’t guarentee him a starting place. He could have cost us nothing like Danny and play virtually every game. We have to start with Rooney and Welbeck I am however bemused why he’s not making the bench but thats up to SAF. Berba is class and I’m sure he’ll figure soon but I think SAF wants to give Welbeck a good run in the team and Chicharito as an option as they are the future. Shame for Berba but he’s a professional.
@everyday has it right. Sad — but true.
Ricky
Not an opinion shared by SAF mate, like I say I love berba but if we had a big game and he was picked ahead of Rooney I would be disappointed.
How Berba can continue to say these positive things inspite of being treated like toilet paper is beyond me. Sir Alex hasn’t treated this guy right, that’s for sure. If I was him, would seriously orchestrate my way out of such treatment. Hailings Berba, the Godfather.
God I wish Ronaldo and even Pogba had this man’s loyalty. Every time he comes on I’m wishing him to do so well but usually falls short, I really feel for him.
He just oozes class. What other 30mil player would be so graceful in his position?! He’s never been my favourite player but he is class and should be getting way more action. Surely must be some shit between him and Fergie that’s causing this freeze out.
STR and another Berba blah blah blah story.
Rooney is Man Utd best player get over your hurt feelings and give him his due.
10. WAYNE ROONEY
Birthdate: 24 Oct 1985
Birthplace: Croxteth, Liverpool
Position: Striker
Appearances 353
Goals Scored 171
Joined United: 31 Aug 2004
By the end of next year STR and the rest. Rooney with playing some 40 + games next year,
HE WILL HAVE 400 GAMES FOR MANCHESTER UNITED AND 200+ GOALS.
He is the MAN!
I want my striker to be pissed the fuck off about no GAME TIME!! CLASS OR PUSH OVER?
Berba looked like a lazy fucker who wanted to be subbed the last game. Wow people here still are so deluded here about BERBA!?????
here.here. hehe
Only if 2 strikers get injured I am afraid. And he may not even start in that scenario if Michael Owen is fit.
What effect can Berbatov can have really? Look at Park. Plays one game and then plays again 4-5 games later. You can’t build momentum like this.
He does have more league goals than Suarez by the way…
@The WitchKing of Angmar
Well said. Couldn’t agree more. Scores 6 in 3 games, then has one bad game at Newcastle (not worse than Rooney mind you) and then he starts 2 out of the next 12…
Rooney is the best striker at the club NO DOUBT about that. I think he’s proven that already a LONG time ago but concerning who should play alongside him… that is debatable. I would rank welbeck as rooney’s number one partner right now but I would play berbatov with rooney BEFORE chicharito. Why? Because he can hold the ball up extremely well. Berbatov is not super human. He needs game time to show what he is really made of. How on earth is he gonna get better when he gets next to NO time on the field. Might not be the fastest but he DID carry us for 80% of last season.
Chicharito can’t hold up the bell NEARLY as well as berbatov. Chicharito is the striker who runs on to knocked down balls for him. Plus he is still young and when berbatov inevitably leaves in one or two years he will inevitably take on that game time that berbatov is leaving.
Fergie’s the Godfather. Berba’s Fredo!
@Zibbie
Yeah and your response is a Rooney blah blah comment.
I don’t see what this has to do with Rooney. Berbatov should be getting more chances to play with Rooney. Not instead of him.
And if he was pissed off and expressed it in this interview, he would have been no better than Carlos Tevez who we all trashed for his moaning in 08-09. Berba oozes class. Both on and off the field.
@danny
I doubt Berba has 1-2 years left at United mate. He’ll be sold in June or January at the latest.
Kebab fair play as always hehehe HAHAHA.
WILLIE FREDO HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.
I was droooolllliiinnnngggg when Berba was signed. In the end like Fredo, he broke my heart. I wanted better for the man the team and me.
Kebab, Not to cry like Teves, just pout a little.
3 points please.
@Zibbie
I think certain situations call for public complaining. That’s why I understood where Kuszczak was coming from in his interviews this year. He was made 4th choice goalie one year before an international tournament in his home country. He was right to ask why he wasn’t sold.
Berbatov could sulk a bit I guess, but people would still blame him for it, lol. Nah, he really has no reason to air any frustrations in public. It’s part of football and he knows who’s the boss. I want to believe that he does feel upset and wants to prove the manager wrong, but it’s not easy when you start once every 5 games.
SAF wanted berba sold in the summer, but berba turned down the bids. From what I have heard, due to lower wages at the bidding clubs. He is playing out his contract. Again what I have been told. And from how SAF acts this seems true. So, lets be careful mixing in lojalty, when it actually could be greed.
Truth be told? Berbatov needs to leave United. It’s not gonna get any better for him, in terms of starting games regularly. If the choice is between Hernandez, or Berba coming off the bench to get you a goal, who’s Fergie going to go with every time?
@Vilhelm28
That could be the case, although I suspect PSG threw plenty of money at him. Berbatov was adamant about staying (as was Fergie to be fair). But there’s nothing wrong with wanting to cut the best deal possible imo. When a player is at the age Berbatov is, it’s their last chance to make the best deal possible.
@willie
Hernandez. However, who are you going to start with in games where you need to retain possession, like Bilbao at home?
Kebab, spot on, I could not agree more.
But there’s nothing wrong with wanting to cut the best deal possible imo.
I’m all for the players making more and more and more. I love Man Utd self imposed salary cap, a percentage of turnover. Perfect as that goes up so do the wages for all. I got over paying them millions for playing a game I loved to play as a kid in the early 80′s. They are in the BIG business of ENTERTAINMENT! Get what you can lads.
@ Costas, I’m with you 100 percent on this one. Its like some people forget that these players are human. I put myself in his position and if I was being treated like Berba, I wouldn’t be best pleased about it. I wouldn’t say negative things about the club in interviews, but I don’t think I would say positive things either. A simple no comment is what I’ l say until I am able to leave the club.
If its true that Berba rejected bids for him, then I wonder what he was thinking because I don’t see the situation changing for him. Its actually going to get worse the longet he’s at the club so the earlier he leaves, the better for every one.
Let’s no kid ourselves, I think its obvious there’s some shit between Fergie and Berba that us fans do not know about but in all these, one thing that’s for sure is this, Berba has acted with so much class, so fair play to him, he deserves our respect.
Costas – I would’ve started with him against Bilbao. The fact he didn’t, says alot. To not even make the bench was puzzling. Saying that though, he’s too good to benched every other week. I think it would be best for him and the club to go their separate ways.
I agree Willie, the time has come.
I bloody love this guy and his attitude. A few at Emptyhead who could learn a thing or two about being a dignified professional from Berba.
It’s a shame he hasn’t played more this season. I enjoy watching him. Hopefully he can play a part in the run-in and grab us #20
Well…good winning football is played by fit technically skilled footballers with good football brains. Is there anyone more skilled among our strikers than Berbatov?….No. Is there someone with a better vision and creative ideas about the attacking actions on the pitch….I doubt that . I rarely see any creativity in attack except on the rare occasions when Berb is playing. Lot`s of speed often combined with bad sloppy passing, unawareness and what to do next in front of the goal is what we see more often than not. Speed without the other qualities does not work as we have seen on many cases during this season, particularly in Europe.
I was begging for Chico to come off after an hour against Bilbao!! He couldn’t pass accurately, his first touch was as bad as I’ve ever seen and he got dispossessed so easily!! Just imagine what a Berbagasm would have felt like at that point of time?!
Hope he leaves at the end of the season, not because I hate him but I want to see the guy play and not see him on the bench. The fact is that he is one helluva intelligent footballer who has not been used properly by SAF. Give the guy a run of games and he will create and score goals. Why he is not being played in europa league when it’s clear as daylight that the Gaffer is more focused on the League (and rightly so) is beyond me? Play the guy and give Rooney a break. We need Rooney for the run in.
As for the cost, I feel that if you buy someone for 30 mil then it pretty much means that you plan to use that player a lot else you wouldn’t fork out 30mil for some bench player unless you are Shitty. Maybe SAF had a certain plan involving Berbatov but it got derailed because other things didn’t fall in place. I just hope he leaves and goes to a team which would love to utilize his silky skills.
Maybe Berbs slept with SAF’s daughter!! That’s why he’s not being involved with the team at all!! :-/
berbatov please go somewhere else for more playing time,i want to see you play more,you’re too good to be on the bench
Oh I just hate this. And I’m gonna stop here, if not I’m gonna go ranting all about Berba now. I love you Berba, you’re a major class act, and I’m proud that you’re our player.
You know, I wouldn’t even blame him if he goes ranting off in the press. But he hasn’t. Class act. Period.
I’d have to agree. If he get’s sold. It’s good for him, though I’d hate it. Will still be supporting him even if he leaves. Just have to regret and rue the fact we let a fantastic player go.
Its true he’ll always be second fiddle to Rooney even if not for Chicharito, Welbeck or Owen. And I’ll admit it, for the big games, the heart says Berba but the head says Rooney. But we don’t even need that situation-to choose Berba over Rooney. How about choosing Berba with Rooney instead, and I’d hope Sir Alex really gives him a chance to play alongside Rooney, though that would seem like a miracle to me at the moment. Its been an awfully long time since I’ve seen Berba on the pitch.
I think the answer is simple. Turn rooney into a second striker/attacking midfielder, e.g. Podolski, rotate Welbz, Owen, Chicha and Berba as 2 strikers. Unfortutanately Cleverly won’t get as many games but I honestly think 3 attackers is better than 2 and Berba and Owen sitting at home.
Berbatov is a top class creative striker and right now we need all the creativity we can get. Our Barcelona, Ajax, and Athletico roll-overs attest to that. The guy needs and deserves more game time and the team will benefit. The rubbish talked about Berbatov’s miss against City and his ‘big game’ credentials is hypocritical and pales into insignificance when compared to Rooney’s missed sitters in the ‘big game’ against Basle, which by the same logic led to our Champions League exit. Strikers miss chances – but you win as a team lose as a team.
The sooner we wake up to the fact that Rooney, fine player though he is, is not good enough or consistent enough for a side that aspires to be at the very top of European football to ‘built’ around, the better. The ‘who plays with Rooney’ selection policy is predicable and limits our options. How many goals did Berbatov and Chico each score last season? Nani? The point being it’s better to have 3 players scoring ten or more goals each, and a better chance of winning something overall, than be dependent on one player scoring 30+ but the team missing out, as Newcastle fans (Cole, Shearer) can attest to.
I agree. He needs games. There’s nothing like experience at this stage of the season, and Berba has it in abundance. I’d be starting him and Rooney up top for all the remaining games. If it isn’t working, then bring on Chicharito or Welbeck as an impact sub.
Mr C your so so wrong on so many different levels wow…..
@Zibbie – I admire you zeal for WR but distorting team selection to accommodate one player doesn’t cut it at the level Rooney’s talent is at for a club with ambitions to stay at Europe’s top table. We’ve tried that and it’s patently not worked as the Ajax and Athletico games vividly illustrate. Wayne could score 30+ goals this season, good for him, but if we don’t win anything and continue on our downward path at the European level, what’s the point? Like I said, it’s better to have 3 players score 10 or more and winning something than Wayne scoring 30 or 40 with the others tailing off winning nothing.
costas 17.14
1. Berbatov has scored more than welbeck as well. And same as hernandez. 2. He didn’t have a bad game vs newcastle. It was just typical berbatov treatment.
berba=twinkle toes!! He is so fleet of foot you would be downstairs watching tv, he could sneak past you, up the stairs and fuck your bird and be back out and you’d never ever know!!!!!! Full of class too. i love the cat.
there has to be a way of somehow incorporating rooney, berba and either chicharito or welbeck.
berbatov can hold onto the ball so much better and can pass better than chicharito or welbeck.