After becoming the Premier League’s top scorer last season, Dimitar Berbatov has found himself as Manchester United’s fourth choice striker this season, behind Wayne Rooney, Javier Hernandez and Danny Welbeck.
Whilst the player has repeatedly spoken about the manager in a respectful way and stated his desire to get back in to the team, his agent, Emil Danchev, has claimed Berbatov would be open to a move away from the club this January.
“We would be interested when Anzhi make a concrete offer,” Danchev said. “We will sit down with Dimitar and ponder this. I don’t know if Dimitar is happy in Manchester. He plays, then he just sits on the bench.”
Anzhi Makhachkala are a Russian club who recently made Samuel Eto’o the best paid player in world football after his move from Inter Milan.
Man Utd News 24/7
he’s a class player but we should let him leave if he wants to …for all his loyalty
he MUST leave. i cannot stand to see such a talented player treated so badly by the club i love, i am deeply ashamed of his treatment thus far. lord knows what happened, but this cant be merely strategic? i really pray he’s allowed to leave and play regular football.
Treated so badly and feeling ashamed? WHY? Not like he’s getting 50 lashes every day after training eh? The manager picks the team he thinks will do the job and if Berba is not in that team then its nothing to feel ashamed about……If his fortunes lay else where than good luck to him, will always love him to bits though
Hey he tried, we tried, the relationship did not work and there is no point staying in it for the children.
If Berba goes, I will not miss him, but I wish him well.
Treated so badly? I think a lot of people would love to be paid £80k+ a week to sit on the bench and play the occasional game. Whilst he’s a great player he’s never really fit in with the way we play, if he wanted to I’m sure he could of engineered a move away at an earlier point, the fact that he’s come out multiple times saying he doesn’t want to leave suggests he’s been treated pretty well.
The writing has been on the wall ever since the snub from the Ch.League final squad, but I sure hope he ends up at a bigger club than this…
friveluss: Think you’re exaggerating there mate. He’s a very talented player yes, but it is hard to question Sir Alex’s decisions seeing as the younger players have done very well for themselves.
Costas
Hi buddy, my gut feeling tells me this thread is going to be like a shit storm! Sort of like the weather we’ve been having here over the last few days….. How is it over at your place my friend?
After everything that has gone on over the last 3 years, does anyone really think Berba would go to play in the Russian league just for the money? He doesn’t strike me as that kind of player. He wants to play but he wants to play at the highest level and for a great club. He is under contract so it’s not really his decision but he could hasve asked for a move sooner instead of praising the club and stating he was happy.
I for one hope he stays and would prefer to see him start more games but at the end of the day, trust the manager.
Will be interesting to see how Berba’s situation is resolved? Anzhi is probably one of the few clubs who could pay 15 mil on a player who is in the last year of his contract. I am not sure Berba will wish to go to a club like that. If there are other – much cheaper – offers, but from better and more prestigious clubs, I am sure Berba would be better off at those places. However, what will United do in that situation. I also have no idea how the situation is going to be worked out. Ideally, like we did with Brown and O’Shea, I want the club to let him go of his own accord instead of holding out for a higher offer. I also don’t want them to opt for the one-year extension just so that he won’t be a free agent in the summer if he isn’t able to move on in January.
All these are difficult questions and the situation itself has become a very weird one. Why did we hold on to him in the summer of 2010? That is the first question that will be asked. I know people will provide lots of answers – Insurance, what if Rooney had been injured, what if Hernandez had not recovered from his concession, what if Welbeck hadn’t shined as much as he has… Those are all fine but still Berba’s overall situation has been a very sorry one ever since he was dropped for the Final. It is hard not to feel pity for him as one of his fans.
@Cedars
Hi mate. Yeah, hopefully STR will come up with another thread soon! It’s quite chilly over here at the moment. No storms or anything like that, but you can clearly tell winter’s here.
@Balaji
I keep wondering the same thing. Berbatov stayed for the same reasons PIG did, but no player likes being considered as a last resort. We should have accepted the PSG offer even if wanted to stay. It’s not like we haven’t sold players that originally wanted to stay before…
My note to Dimi
Dear Dimi
Whether or not you will be a United player next year or next season for that matter, I for one will miss you. You are a true gentleman and they are rare these days. Gracious, down to earth and funny. Skills on the ball that most pro footballers only dream of having. YOU made sure we got number 19 and for that I will always be thankful… You have provided me with many magic moments whilst wearing the shirt and that puts you on a list of many other greats who have done the same over the years…. I love you, you are a great man
@Cedars
What a wonderful heartfelt note mate….
As for Berba, its better if he goes, its really sad to see what is happening at the moment, poor guy has gone from top scorer to fourth fifth choice centre-back…..
Thanks for the memories, the hattrick against pool-scum, the wonderful skills and tricks….wish you well
@Cedars, Oh no, how can you say he made sure we got the 19th? Berba scored all of his goals in a few matches. These are lies purported by Berbahaters and skeptics alike. They say Rooney and Hernandez were more important to us winning the 19th than Berba. Never mind the fact that Rooney had a complete physical and mental breakdown at which time Berbatov was shaking his booty. Never mind the fact that Berba scored 7 match winning goals – directly contributing to a fourth of our points tally. I hate when the facts are skewed by his haters to diminish his importance to us last season. Make no mistake about it, if Berbatov hadn’t stepped up when he did, you might’ve as well kissed the 19th goodbye.
I see some people comparing him to Veron. What a joke. Vernon contributed little during his time here. Berbatov has contributed a lot. And I am sure he has been influential to both Rooney and Hernandez in the training pitch. To deride his contribution to us is simply short-sighted.
Has he been the most successful signing? Hardly. But that doesn’t change the fact that, overall, he has been more succesful than people give him credit for.
Red Devil – Cheers my friend, it did come from the heart.
Costas – The mother of all storms here, been going on for the past few days…
Balaji – Well said, talk to me about tactics etc but how on earth can anyone not like the man? Trust me, I would rather win nothing but have players with his attitude at the club
Off topic, but here’s a norwegian fans love for United…
I guess Gary Neville’s sky office cubicle wont be much different
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iz0Ej9ol4Us&feature=player_embedded
Berba’s latest comments:
It’s great to be here I love this club and I love Sir Alex Ferguson.
And yes I do look like Andy Garcia because he’s my brother from another mother.
Cedars getting mushy again
Me too wheres that box of tissue gone?
I love you too Berba not in a man sought of way but a manly sought of way – wait did that come out right? Oh… whoops… moving on then…
Funny how there are so many similarities and differences between Berb and the troll. They arrived in England in 06, they’ll both leave in 2012, both of them came on as subs in Rome and they shared the Golden Boot last season. As for the differences, ah, where to begin… Lets just say that Ferguson knew best.
Costas
MG – What can I say? I am a mushy type of a person
Red Devil – Brilliant video that, cracked me up! Thanks
Costas
The mere fact of comparing the troll with Berba feels like a sin! hahaha
Pure Class – Dumb Fuck
Best I could come out with
he player well for us for a year.. helped us massively for no. 19.. .i think its almost certain he’ll leave..
wish him well.. .he’s 30 now. needs to play day in day out.. so makes sense. plus we get 15 mil.. and hence can scout unknown mids for a summer signing… seems win win…
i still feel he can be of massive use towards the end of the season.. but he’s warmed the bench enough already
@cedars : nice letter… really liked it…
Good luck to the lad is all I say. We look at the likes of Barcelona and marvel at their level headed play and fine passing play. We dont see Xavi running around like a headless chicken nor do we see Iniesta making needless runs to put pressure on the player when that player has 3 or 4 to pass to. Its pointless. So what do we do. We try and sell our most level headed and most skillfull player on the ball. According to the press of course. Too many people on here take the presses word as gospel and then slate them for choosing Liverpool as potential league champions every year. What is it to be do we believe the press or not. Just because Berbas agent “allegedly” said something to the press, stating that he doesnt know if Berbas happy and then mouths of a bit about playing time and answering the question about Anzi as truthfully as possible youve all come up with hes going. As far as I remember it wasnt that long ago Fergie said he wants to keep him and Gill said we could well be extending his contract for that extra year.
Fergie start playing Berba regularly, he is a far better player than people give him credit for being.
In my opinion it should be
DeGea
Fabio – Vidic – Smalling – Evra
Jones – Carrick
Wellbeck – Rooney – Young
Berbatov
@Cedars, MG
As our dear friend GHTT once said, you don’t have to chase the ball around like a headless chicken if you can control it like Berbatov.
Well, if he isn’t going to get game time for us, all I can hope for is that we sell him to a club in a league that I can watch on TV
Cedars
Most welcome to it mate
Costas
I like headless chickens – especially when your roasting them
Dear GHTT
Lovely man that fellow –
Hear here 
Gutted to be honest. Top player and technically one of our best. Love the bloke but feel it is right if he moves on then. Top man too. Has been a joy paying 800 quid a season to watch him play. Especially last season. Sad it hasnt worked out.
Cedars
This mushiness is so lovely
I hate this “he doesn;’t suit our style of play”. Its not like we rip teams apart week in week out on the counter. Anyway as I keep citing. His goal against Balckburn to complete his hat trick was right out the top drawer on the counter.
@King Eric
Do you think he’s one of those players at United that is here at that wrong time?
I believe if he was at United earlier he would have been more valuable this United team and last United team doesn’t suit him – maybe in the days with Ruud together – what a partnership that would have been…
Just a thought…
Style of play doesn’t have a lot do with it. Our play has been slow countless times this season and he wasn’t anywhere near the pitch. The main problem is that as things stand now, he can’t be depended on like he would like.
@MG
I like seeing them chase around the ball as Rio, Edwin and Vidic pass it between them.
Oay I got my answer before I asked it
– anyway I love the man – top player excellent attitude – his work ethic defines his characteristics and he is what he is
Mostly understood and for that matter that is the ultimate shame.
Berbatov? Top bloke.
Sepp Blatter? Fat bloated corrupt cunt.
Sorry typos above
Okay and Mostly misunderstood – Stupid typos
Costas
Stupid headless chickens why couldn’t they wear Barca shirts?
Sepp Blatters latest comments:
Ooo ooo aaa aaa!
Carry on Rio – you the man!
Hows Tokyo Sexy the Japanese man that became a black man the one that Blatter loves?
Its a shame because I feel Berba can pull off his style of play for a good 5-6 years to come. We sell him and we will all be going “what we need is a playmaking forward someone who can link midfield with attack and put his foot on the ball and wait for support.” Well all look through what other teams have and come up with Berba would be a good idea, oh except hes too old ofr a 30million fee.
Fergie keep him dont make a mistake. Wellbeck can learn his trade ala Solksjaer and play on the wing. Id rather we shifted Nani then shifted Berbatov.
MG – Hello mate. Yes perhaps so. But then you could argue that he should have formed a superb partnership with Wayne or Hernandez. Its a bloody strange one mate. I have honestly enjoyed every minute of his time at the club.
King Eric
I agree – very strange with how everything has happened – Let’s see what the season brings though I can’t see him going in January.
Berba to be a hero this year still feel it…
19
He’s not gone til he’s gone. And let’s hope he’s not gone.
He’s going….but he ain’t gone yet.
The Berb has always had someone ahead of him or at his heels that he’s got to outshine(at great pressure)
If he is going to start complaining then he can fuck off. Good riddance!
brett1985 you must be joking right?tell you what why don’t you fuck off and good riddance to you
Anzhi’s a big spender – apparently they paid $38.9m to Inter for Eto’o and are paying Eto’o $28.8m per season (that’s over 50% more than C.Ronaldo’s getting). As much as I love Berba, that kind of money turns heads, both for club and player.
Balaji @ 10:52: “Anzhi is probably one of the few clubs who could pay 15 mil on a player who is in the last year of his contract.”
They also need a partner for Samuel Eto’o, who was the best striker in the world over the past TEN years. Eto’o might no longer be “the best” but he’s damned good and he is a lethal finisher. So, in that regard – and because money is no issue in Anzhi’s “business plan” – it’s a transfer that makes sense for them.
What about for Dimmy ? He’d get playing time and a HUGE salary increase – and don’t tell me he “isn’t that sort of player”, they all are and they should be because their window-of-opportunity is small and in his case this will be his last contract. After SAF snubbed Dimmy in the CL final, it seemed that the transfer-clock was ticking. They’ve both said all the right things but – in the last analysis – they are involved in a business: the entertainment business and there’s not much place for sentimentality when it comes to the bottom line.
For UTD, this would be a god-send. 15 million for a fourth-choice, 30-year old player who is in the last year of his contract.
If this come true then I’d package-up the money and KikoTheKid, sending it to ASRoma for Daniele De Rossi who is stalling on renewing his contract. De Rossi ticks all the boxes in regard to what UTD need to fortify the midfield – he’s still young (27ish), strong in the tackle, energetic, somewhat-”dirty”, and two-footed. He’s played at the very highest level since he was a teen-ager and won the World Cup in 2006. He’s now on a dysfunctional team in a dysfunctional situation (permanently in Totti’s shadow). That sounds like an Identikit description for the cure to what ails UTD’s midfield.
WillieRedNut will come on and say that De Rossi’s best days are behind him – maybe, maybe not. My response to him would be that form is temporary, class is permanent – of course, it’s a gamble but in the situation I’m proposing, UTD would be playing with “house money”.
After 25 minutes no comments – bow down to my superior logic !
Everyone has given up discussing Berba with you Denton nothing to do with superior logic
brett – Ha. Complaining? Are you being ironic?
@wayne
Hi mate. No need to get too personal with anyone. Of course the notion “how dare Berbatov complain” (which he hasn’t even though he probably should have) is inaccurate, but we are all entitled to our opinions.
And whether he leaves in January or June, I know that my opinion about the guy (as a player and a person) has been validated.
Oh god. Not the De Rossi thing again. He aint ever gonna leave Roma.
It’s not about whether he would leave Roma or not. The guy is the right type of player, but he’s not the one for United. Certainly not energetic these days either. Real Madrid have signed loads of midfielders under Mourinho. They’ve been linked with De Rossi in the past, but never made a move for him. You have to wonder why? If Real really wanted him, he’d be in Spain. I’d look closer to home for a CM.
Good post…always interesting when discussing Berba.
An interesting comment I found at another post when browsing the net about Berbatov and with which I fully agree.
the comment:
David says:
This article shows the lack of footballing knowledge of whoever who wrote this article.
Berbatov a flop? No he is not a flop but he is not a success either. There are reasons for him not being a success and the majority of the blame lies with the coaching staff.
Why buy Berbatov if they do not know how to use him to the best?
Time and again you would see him in acres of space and the ball would not be passed to him. It is the British mentality that you have to run 90MPH to be a good player. If United had given the ball the ball to Berbatov whenever he wants it, we would not be talking about him. He is the player with the best first touch in the EPL and has the vision and ability to do things others can only look and admire.
The author says he sulks. I am surprised that that is the only thing he does and not go and kick some of his team mates up their back sides when they refuse to pass to him and then lose the ball while they dilly dally and try to decide what they are going to do with the ball. I hope that he goes in January to a club that enjoys the technical kind of football that he plays.
I would also like to add that the departure of Carlos Quiroz did play a significant role in the downfall of Berbatov as the quality of technical football that United used to play has gone down considerably now.
******
http://football-talk.co.uk/47503/the-next-cantona-no-chance-dimitar-berbatov-has-been-a-united-flop/
i actually agree with denton davey. sound logic. and impartial view. rare combination that.
can’t just put on berba tinted glasses all the time
Imo De Rossi is too old and too used to playing in Italy. And Macheda is too young to give up on. A Berba departure should be to his benefit.
@Mp
Thanks for that opinion. Makes a lot of sense. It really would have been interesting to see what ideas CQ had about him.
well i wouldn’t fancy de rossi…
neither would i fancy WS anymore.. seems like we dodged a bullet on that one..
he’s having a stinker of a season
Costas @ 16:50: “De Rossi is too old and too used to playing in Italy”
Daniele De Rossi was born in July 1983 – so he’s turned 28. I would have thought that the next four/five years would be the prime years for a guy with his tool-kit.
I just don’t understand “too used to playing in Italy”. What exactly does that mean ? The only relevant point would be that he can’t understand English – otherwise, it’s a matter of “see ball/kick ball” (or, in his case, see opponent/kick opponent – something that UTD have been lacking since Keane-o went into his decline !).
Of course, he might never want to leave Italy – or come to Manchester with it’s two restaurants and constant rain ! That would be his loss.
I think the point Costas is trying to convey, the game in Italy is more slowed paced. English football is high octane. He’s used to the pace in Italy. He could struggle in the premiership, due to the end to end nature of the English game? Is that about it, Costas?
@Costas hi mate I’m not you and I’m not going to let brett1985 slag Berba off and say just stupid shit,I mean it if he says good riddance and fuck off to Berba he deserves the same if you don’t agree fair enough but I don’t like being told what to do Costas and don’t see why you’re coming after me and not brett1985
Treated so badly and feeling ashamed? WHY? Not like he’s getting 50 lashes every day after training eh?
Oh Cedars cracked me up.
I wouldn’t let him go but every player has a price. It depends what they are offering, if they come in with anything over 20 million I’d bite their hands off. Would be sad to see him go but would wish him all the best.
James21 – Cheers!
Rohan – Glad you liked it buddy
I haven’t read all the comments yet. Probably don’t need to anyway.
Most of the regulars here know my thoughts on Berbatov. Always been a supporter. But still, I don’t understand comments that people are “ashamed” of the way he has been treated. Just don’t get that at all. What’s up with that? No one is guaranteed playing time. The club pays a lot of money to have the right to play someone, but that’s it. We can argue about selection decisions on their footballing merits, but it’s nonsense to talk about “fairness” or “shame”. That manager has to decide which players to use, and when and how to use them. That’s his job, and it isn’t easy. SAF doesn’t get it right all the time (and I am sure he would be the first to admit that) but he bloody well gets it right more often than not, and he certainly does a better job of it than anyone else has ever done.
As for Berbatov, I love him to death, but I have come to recognize that time moves on. I still hope that he will get again the opportunity to show what he can do, as he did last year. But the reality is that he will soon be 31, and for that simple fact alone, he does not represent the future of this club.
It’s up to him and the club to sort out when and how he leaves. They may decide to exercise their option to extend his contract and keep him on for another year, in a similar role to Owen. They may decide to sell him in January, if he is agreeable to that. Or they may decide to simply let his cotract expire next summer and he can walk on a free.
StatesideAussie
Evening pal, I did send Berba a letter earlier on this thread, think you in particular will like it….
Cedars … yes, that is terrific mate! Well done, and cheers!
No I think i will stand by my comments. He sulks about the pitch, berates young players who misplace passes while being absolute shit himself. Now his agent is going public about possible moves and moaning about him being on the bench.
How about putting the effort in and getting back in the team instead of being a useless, lazy shit.
Thankfully in the scheme of things, what I have been saying about him all along has come to pass. Of course Ferguson was astute enough to realise this in his first season dumping him on the bench for the CL knockout stages a trend which only escalated until this season where he doesn’t seem to feature anymore.
For someone who is essentially irrelevant, he has hung on at united for too long- whilst being afforded ample opportunity to prove himself.
In the meantime we have to put up with excuse after excuse about how great he is and how we don’t notice his talent. Yet, many players with a nice touch including cantona were embraced by everyone.
There was never an agenda, he was just shit and fans became entrenched defending the indefensible.
Berba’s getting antsy….so he’s off to Anzhi!
@wayne
I am not coming after you in any way. You know how much I respect you. It’s just a friendly suggestion. It’s just that I am tired of playing moderator with anyone that doesn’t like Berba. And I am guessing that the same goes for others here. It’s their choice and we wont change anyone’s mind anymore. Lets channel our energy and insults to a better direction is all I am saying. But I definitely wasn’t trying to tell you what to do.
Costas & Wayne
Don’t fall out over me!
Stateside
Cheers to you too, just popped a couple so I should be wasted pretty shortly! hahaha
A part of me does not want to recover, I just love these pills!
brett – Nonsense pal. He was key to our 19th and that can never be disputed.
Cedars … wish you could throw a couple my way hahaha. I could do to get wasted. I know it must be a bitch that you need to take them for your condition, but hey, if there’s some part of it that’s enjoyable, so much the better, my friend!
Kisses and hugs now fellas
While you raise some interesting points Brett, I won’t accept he’s been shit for United. Poor on occasions, but never shit.
Stateside
Although my kidneys are fucked up and the pain at times is unbearable I just love these pills…. We are talking major powerful stuff here…. They bloody knock me out, makes me feel like I am floating! hahaha
Should be ok in a few days time….. RoM seems much funnier when I am under the influence mind you!
King Eric:
I dispute the word key and replace it with ‘useful’ or the phrase ‘played his part’. A part I feel any competent striker could have played given the service united’s strikers enjoy.
Seven winning goals — that’s 21 points attributable directly to the Berb in our landmark, 19th-title season. Many of those goals were scored when no one else in our squad looked like they were going to do the business, including a hat-trick that sealed a 3-2 win over our most hated rivals (and what a hat-trick it was, too: a header that made a total numpty out of Torres, an overhead kick of stupendous, breathtaking ability, and another header that reduced Jamie Carragher to an irrelevance). Not only that, but saved the club the embarrassment of the Troll being PL top scorer for Man Shitty — and even though they ended level, the honors weren’t exactly shared, as none of the Berb’s goals were cheap penalties.
Say what you like, but his achievements last year will go down in United lore. Years from now, my kids will still be talking about the day they saw the Bulgarian Maestro destroy Liverpool with a masterclass of power and skill. They’ll still be talking about how they watched every match in the season when the Bulgarian Genius led our club to the very pinnacle of the record books as the most successful English club of all time.
And they’ll still be talking about the way he pulled that Paul Scholes cross-field screamer out of the air with one deft, magical touch, tamed it so completely and instantly that it sat up and begged to be hit … even if he didn’t score from it, who gives a fuck. I’ll pay money to watch that all day.
@denton
It’s just about what willie says right after your comment. I don’t trust him to be able to make that transition. He’s been through the wars, like any player in his position, and imo any CM is moving beyond his prime at 28-29. I could be wrong, but I don’t remember many players in his age coming from Italy and making an impact in the Premiership. The 2 most highlighted examples being Veron and Shevchenko of course…
Err, anyone with half a brain would know this ‘No Berba, no number 19′ Simple really
@Cedars
Simple yet for some, very complicated.
Costas
If anything, people should at least show gratitude!
I love you Berba……. Let it burn down the throat of every doubter or hater. If you REALLY love United then how on earth can you not love Berbatov….. He is the perfect example of what a United player should be like, both on and off the pitch
CedarsDevil says:
You could make a similar statement in relation to many of the first team players.
Stateside
You would be mistaken if you presumed I was not especially pleased with his hatrick against Liverpool or his useful match winning goals. It was great.
He made a very good contribution in that patch of the season and a good contribution overall although he seemed to be of limited use towards the end.
I consider that I’ve given him credit for that season though I wouldn’t go so far as to say his achievements will go down in lore.
What gets me is this: I think many of the Berba-haters or Berba-sceptics would agree that whatever our opinions on the last three years, his age makes it basically inevitable that he will move on soon. He could be the best striker ever, but at the age of 31, and with the young talent that we have coming up, and with our need to keep rejuvenating the team, his days are numbered. They must be. Even if Sir Alex wanted to play Berbatov every week, he would still have to deal with the issue that talent like Hernandez and Welbeck won’t wait around forever. He can’t afford not to use them. To do so would be to risk losing them, and/or to risk denying them experience which they desperately need if they are to succeed. It would be irresponsible for Sir Alex to keep playing Berbatov (or anyone) until the day he is clearly knackered, and then turn to his subs bench and hope that Hernandez and Welbeck are still there, and then expect them to instantly come up to speed.
So given all that, why can’t get the Berba-haters and Berba-sceptics just leave it alone? You want him gone. One way or the other, he soon will be, and in the meantime, he isn’t keeping anyone out of the team or doing anything wrong. So why not just let it run its course? Why keep bashing him? Why keep trying to dump on his legacy? That’s what fucks me off.
Pablo Escobar ain’t received this much hate.
Good dope, though.
Berba is miles ahead of Welbeck. Welbeck can´t do anything on his own, he is dependent of in form players around him whilst Berba carried our team in a year where we “sucked” most of the season according to Manchester United standards.
I feel gutted every game Welbeck is picked before Berba. But in the same time I guess the man in charge has it all figured out. His team selection has confused me several times the last couple of seasons ad look where it got us.
We are the fucking perch!
Welbeck is the future, Berba is ancient history. Capiche?
Yeah, leave Danny out of it! He’s a young buck, making his way through ranks. A fucking homegrown striker at last under the great man!
Spot on, Willie. I’m actually amazed to hear one of our fans say they are “gutted” every time they see Welbeck’s name on the team sheet FFS.
StateSideAusie @ 20:07: “So given all that, why can’t get the Berba-haters and Berba-sceptics just leave it alone? You want him gone”
Actually, I’m not sure about “wanting him gone”.
Since UTD have run down his contract – depreciated its value in the accountants’ terminology – I think that there is a good argument to keeping him around for the second half of the season as insurance, in the possible scenario that there’s an injury-related cluster-fuck to the other three strikers (LittleMikey has gotten himself ahead of that curve !)
We have no way of knowing how much Anzhi would pay UTD to buy Dimmy since they can get him for “free” – i.e., no transfer fee – a few months later. BUT if the reports of a 15 million bid is correct then that makes the argument in the previous paragraph dicey since that would render his “insurance value” very high.
Aside from those points, I would actually concur with the BerbaLovers that SAF made a crucial mistake in not putting Dimmy on the bench against Barcelona. For whatever reason, Chicharito wasn’t getting service and Antonio Valencia’s game was sussed; when Nani came on he was effective and I think that Dimmy might also have been useful, too. As it was, UTD only used two of their three allotted substitutions – and the last fifteen/twenty minutes were dire; the look on SAF’s face spoke volumes about how he had miscalculated the challenge posed by Barcelona’s “hunting-in-packs” Would Berbatov have made a difference ? probably not; but not affording himself that option was a big, big tactical error by SAF – I wrote that in May and have repeated it since.
I suggested the de Rossi “transfer” as a form of lateral-thinking – playing with “house money”. Again, he might not be the ideal candidate to firm up UTD’s midfield (the 2006-8 version would be preferable to today’s) but he would bring fire, determination, energy, and savvy to a midfield that is often woefully lacking in fight and outnumbered. Finally, I think that the cliche about the slowness of the game in Italy needs to be trashed – it’s not 1985 anymore !
brett
Ha?
It might not be 1985 anymore, but it’s still a long way off the pace, of the premiership. I stand by that comment. I have watched the Italian league throughout the years. Probably more than most on here. As for De Rossi? I suppose you could argue he would improve our midfield. Given the way, we’ve toiled the last few years. I would counter that suggestion, that he wouldn’t dramatically improve United’s midfield. We can argue the finer points of this, but I will stick by my opinion. As others would. If we’re in the market for that type of player, I would put forward Tiote as an option. They would probably cost the same, but I think Tiote’s wages would be far less than De Rossi’s. In any case, De Rossi will end up signing a new deal with Roma. He’s a Roman through and through.
Your over use of the word ‘argue’ would entail that you are up for an ‘argument’
Seriously though Willie, top post
Denton … well, I did not mention you by name, but what you say is fair enough. From an accounting perspective, the book value of his registration will be zero once the January window closes, so 15 million would be a very good bit of business. (Assuming he wants to go, of course.) I don’t doubt that SAF has been looking Berbatov as insurance this year, and whatever else I might think of it, I do recognize that the young talent must be brought through.
Yes, I have seen your comments about the CL final before, and you have always been reasonable about that. I concur with every point you make about that — I too will never forget the look on Sir Alex’s face in those last 15 or 20 minutes, and the unused substitution quota spoke volumes. Of course, no one can know what would have happened. I too doubt that Berbatov would have made the difference. But he would have given Barca a different problem to think about. And at the crucial moment, when we desperately, desperately needed a plan B, the one man most likely to provide it wasn’t available. Fuck it, I don’t want to pick open the scabs of history; they should be allowed to heal. But it is nice to hear your thoughts on this (again), and you do yourself enormous credit with those comments.
As for de Rossi, I am at a loss to know what to do about the midfield. I still can’t past the notion that a two-man central midfield just won’t work against the major teams, and yet that is what we’re set up for.
I hope the reports aren’t true I’d hate to see Berba leave – truly gifted players aren’t a dime a dozen. However, I wouldn’t blame Berba a bit if he left as overall he’s been treated like shit and is getting on. A player of his quality simply deserved better. Berba not even making the bench for the Champions league final was an insult as well as a tactical error and possibly the only time in 40 years of supporting United that I’ve been genuinely angry with a SAF decision or the wider United set up. In retrospect, given our performance on that day and and our thrashing at the hands of City it’s probably divine intervention that Berbatov didn’t start either game as the haters would of had a field day. In fact, same were still on his case even though he didn’t play! People tend to forget it was we that chased and bought Berba, not the other way way round.
I started supporting United years ago when my dad took me to watch Best, Law and Charlton in their pomp. I’m certainly not putting Berbatov in that company. But he’s good – world class. And the thing is that United has always been the club that talented players in this country – players who could offer something different and send a chill down your spine- wanted to play for if they had the chance, and if given that chance were given their head. Players who said otherwise were and are generally liars.
More widely, given the experiences of Veron and Forlan, United might find it more difficult to attract established foreign stars were Berbatov to leave. Being seen in the market for players as a waster of established foreign talent or else regarded as an outfit in thrall to ‘team Rooney’ , is not a good place to be if you’re based in the grim and rainy North West of England. City? That’s different. They’re owned by a despot pay over the odds and attract money driven whores. Class and quality in football has a home and it’s called United. It is this that separates us from the rest of the pack.
Cedars – Thank you my pill popping friend! I can argue anything…..and anyone.
Mr C
To have seen Best and co live means you are blessed my friend…. Brilliant post
Willie
Anyone doubting that would be a nutter buddy! Can never ‘argue’ that fact my Northern Irish friend
You lot produced Best, how can we not love you? to bits may I add
@Cedars- Thanks pal and hope you are well. I guess the privilege of seeing the greatest and most entertaining forward line ever assembled by a British club is one of the few benefits of being an old fart. Best was a genius, Sir Bobby was superb – surely the best English player since the war -and Denis simply sublime. It was great fun to watch for a kid!
Mind you there were many years of disappointment ( Ian Ure? Paddy Roche?) to suffer until SAF and Eric ‘Dieu’ Cantona finally worked their magic on the club and forged the big breakthrough.We owe those two in particular the high uplands we now occupy. Best was possibly the best player ever to play for us but Eric was probably the most important if that makes sense…
We are so lucky right now…
Mr C
Starting to get better my friend, thanks for asking… I am envious of you though! Mind you I could better that, my late dad watched the BABES live……. Cannot better that eh? Best 11 to ever play the game…
Seriously though I salute you buddy, my own early days with United had one hero and one alone…. His name was Robbo
@ Cedars – “No Berba – No 19″
Dude I know you are on pills and wish you well soon, however that is just a nonsense statement. nani was our best player last season his assists and all round play. How about:
No Nani – No 19 – No Vidic – No 19, No Rooney and Pea – No 19. This is what is frustrating about Berba fans a complete lack of perspective that undermines other plays and the Club in a desperate attempt to elevate a player who has not delivered at United, who has lost the managers confidence to deliver and who has been treated very well by the Club and given the same opportunity as everyone else to shine. He did not / could not take his opportunity to establish himself. That is his problem not Uniteds. And fuck anyone blaming Unted coaches, the manager and the Club – seriously Fuck you.
I was suggesting this in the summer and got slated for it.
Berba, as talented as he is, isn’t the kind of player who can go 3 weeks without playing and still come in to make an impact (i.e Solskjaer or Owen). He needs REGULAR game time to keep his form, rhythm and confidence up. We saw that last season….first 6 months he played regularly and scored a bucketload. After that he lost his place, and when he was called upon, he generally didn’t perform.
Now Fergie made it clear towards the end of last season that he didn’t see Berba as a first choice. Rooney & Chicha were ahead of him….and I also thought Welbeck should be given his chance ahead of him (something else I got slated for!). So didn’t it make sense for both parties to let him go in the summer?
He gets to go somewhere where he plays regularly and keep his form up…we would’ve got £10-15m from PSG, for a 30 year old in the last year of his deal. As it is, we’ve just wasted 5 months of his time (although I see what people are saying about him being the “insurance policy”). We may still get a similar amount in January though, and its the best move all round. He’s no use to anybody when he’s sitting on the bench, because as I mentioned above…..he’s not the kinda player who can come in from the cold and make an impact, he needs regular football, which he was never gonna get.
Oh, and can we have a bit of perspective please….from both sides.
People tryna devalue what Berba did last year are just plain wrong. The guy played a MASSIVE part in us winning #19. I’ve gotta agree with the comments above….no Berba, no #19. For that, it’s pretty ridiculous to say he’s in the same category as Veron, coz his contribution has been far greater than Veron’s.
At the same time, you’ve got the other side of the coin, where people are blinded by their love for the guy. Like ALL players….Berba has his good points and his bad points. But they seem unable to accept that he’s got his flaws (lack of consistency, didn’t suit the style, rarely turned up in big games). I know we’re Utd fans, but are we supposed to believe that everything’s rosy and there’s no flaws in any of our players’ games?
Finally, @Goat- You’d rather ship Nani off and move Welbeck out wide just to accomodate Berba? Everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, but I don’t agree with that one bit!
NBI – it’s not as if Cedars was crediting Berbatov with singlehandedly winning #19, he was just pointing out that Berbatov was an integral part of it. No-one can deny that, can they?
I’m sure he’ll be integral to Anzhi winning #1 too.
Classless, plastic, nouveau riche bastards.
15 million for a 30 year old?
I’ll help him pack.
Mr C … lovely post. For me, if Berbatov was to leave tomorrow, I would always think of this as the “great might-have-been” experiment. The reason I don’t think of it that way right now is that I still have some hope that his United story isn’t done yet. It may be entering its final chapter, but it could still be a cracker.
Many of us (even some who don’t rate Berbatov all that much) agree about the Champions League final. It will be interesting to hear SAF’s thoughts on that, later, perhaps after he retires. The sight of him on the bench in the last 15 or 20 minutes of that match — well, he knew it was lost, didn’t he? He had rolled the dice and it came up snake eyes. As several have noted previously, the fact that we didn’t even use all our allowed subs is about as damning as it gets.
But beyond that match, I can’t help feeling Berbatov/United never quite woirked out, and I don’t really understand why not. I don’t blame him. Or SAF. Maybe it was just one of those things? I feel sure that when he was bought, SAF intended something different for the team in terms of style, especially in Europe. And yet Europe is where we’ve used Berbatov least of all.
If I had to put a finger on one particular aspect of it, I would say that the partnership between him and Rooney never really worked well. My guess is that they never developed a proper understanding, possibly because both players (in different ways) depend on a high level of unpredictability — Rooney with his constant movement, Berbatov with his ball usage. My view was that Berbatov would get the ball and hold it up in and around the opposition penalty box, frustrate the defenders, draw them out of position to open holes, and then feed the ball to Rooney running through. But to make that work requires anticipation and coordination, executed with split-second timing. If the guy with the ball finds it difficult to figure out where the runner will go, and/or if the runner finds it difficult to predict where the guy with the ball will put it, then that’s going to be a problem.
Anyway, that’s my 10 cents on why the Rooney/Berbatov axis never really clicked.
@Stateside- I’d agree with that much. I couldn’t put it squarely on Berba’s shoulder with regards to the chemistry between him and the team not working out….they haven’t adapted to him as much as the other way around.
I do think Fergie thought he could play the Cantona role as the withdrawn striker, with Rooney as the Sparky type player. IMO though…Berba’s best performances (last season) came when he was up top, doing a similar job to what you said. High up the pitch, holding it up and bringing others into play, and sticking the ball in the onion bag.
Where he lost his place in the end was the fact that Hernandez could also play high up the pitch. He couldn’t hold onto the ball and bring others into play as well as Berba….but he stretched defences with his movement (which in turn forces defences to sit deeper….which in turn gives the likes of Rooney, Carrick etc an extra 5-10 yards of space to work with). On top of that, his consistent goal scoring made him a hard prospect to ignore.
@ Fred
Not denying Berba made a conttribution last year, he did and he was part of the squad that won the title and played a significant role in that. It’s just when people try to blame everyone but him for his being benched and people slam the Club for his “treatment” that I get really pissed off because that is all bullshit.
Last year United won the EPL and was in the finals of the CL. United is one of the strongest teams in the world with a history to match.
Good players coming to United are put under an intense miscroscope that shows up any imperfections and weaknesses. This is why players who look good at lower ranked Clubs suddenly seem not that good when they more to a real top club. Even really good players like Ronaldo and Nani and Giggs and Rooney all have the ability to learn and adapt for games and team mates and opponents. Berba does not have that versatility, he is not capable of adapting, he plays one way and when it works he looks great when it doesn’t he is ineffective, mentally and his finishing sometimes, is also below the United brand and standard.
So for me, I wish Berba well, but like many players who shine at lower levels, when he was put under the microscope of a top Club he lacked that ability to make the 10-20% step up that you have to make, like Young is making, like Valencia made – remember what people thought when we got him.
So in short all this fuss and over the top ridiculousness and bashing the Club, manager and other players for a player who failed to perform at top level is crazy. If he was that good as some people think wouldn’t City (who no longer want him), Chelsea, Real, Barca, Milan, even Arsenal bid for him?
Who has bid for him – PSG apparently but his agent made clear he did not want to leave so what could United do? When it became clear his option is not going to get extended and he is benched more than last season his agent started talking up Anzhi – who the hell are they. Had anyone heard of them last year? Another rich mans top club. They got Eto on his way down only for mega money. It’s a joke really.
@NBI
Too soon to say Young has made any sort of step up that Berbatov didn’t. He’s only been here for 4 months and only played well in the first 2. Lets give him a season or two and see how he comes along. Imo Berbatov stepped up big last year. As for the summer, Berbatov’s stance shouldn’t have been enough to keep him at the club. I am sure Stam wanted to stay at the club in the summer of 01, but Fergie sold him as soon as the Lazio offer came.
@ Costas
Morning mate. I think SAF regarded him as a useful but non-essential player to have around. With Welbeck unproven, it made sense to have Berba as experienced back up gven Owen’s inury record. However, I think if Berba wanted to go they would have let him go.
Re Young, agree it’s early days, but have to admit I am quite excited about what he brings to our game, looking forward to seeing him back in action!
@NBI
It became a sticky situation after the Wembley final. And maybe there were plenty of factors in keeping Berbatov, but just like with PIG, I feel that we didn’t do the player any justice by keeping him around. Maybe I don’t have all the facts, but O’Shea’s situation must not have been all that different. And the funny thing is that in terms of our squad, we needed Sheasy more than we do Berba. I just how that the situation won’t get any messier.
I hope you’re right about Young. The guy got me very excited at the start of the season. I am just hoping that long term he’ll fit into the club like Yorke did. And not like Veron who was equally impressive when he first arrived. Oh and good morning .
http://www.mirrorfootball.co.uk/news/Manchester-United-boss-Alex-Ferguson-I-will-keep-Dimitar-Berbatov-for-another-year-article831857.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter
SO, what does this mean ?
Could be lip service. Fergie was adamant Veron was going nowhere. Ten days later…..we sold him.
*Sigh* Veron (who I also liked a lot) left one day after his dominant performance against Juventus in the US. Like willie said, it’s safe to say that you can never be sure.
WillieRedNut @ 16:59: “Could be lip service.”
I agree – strengthening UTD’s bargaining position. However, I’m still wary of selling Dimmy UNLESS the quoted fee (15 million) is roughly accurate.