This is your breakthrough season....You are your club's top scorer... You netted a hat-trick against your arch-rivals in the course of the season which included a sublime overhead kick..... And then the unthinkable happens: You are left out of the team to play the Champions League final, not even making the bench. What next after that? You hand in a transfer request right? You question your manager's decision to leave you out of the team? Well not when you are Dimitar Berbatov.
There's no denying the fact that Berbatov has been far from every United fan's cup of tea since he joined us three years ago. He's come under a lot of criticism in his three seasons at United. But certainly the fans' frustrations are justified, are they not? We all expected a lot more from the Bulgarian than what he has produced so far. As a matter of fact, any £30m+ striker arouses a high level of expectation among fans. Chicharito's emergence last term didn't make it any easier for him and he found himself relegated to the bench.
But let's look at the other side of the coin for a moment. Forget the statistics and goal returns; forget those two glaring misses against City and his poor European form. Time and time again he's been criticized for his approach to the game and his 'sluggish' nature. "Berba's too slow"; "he needs to add pace to his game". Every mistake he makes his greeted with groans from the crowd who sound like they've had enough. Telling Berbatov to change his style of play is equivalent to telling Chicharito to drop deep and dictate play. The thing with Dimi is he's a different kind of striker. The kind you won't easily find anywhere in the world. I tend to refer to him as 'Zinedine Zidane turned striker''. He oozes class with his every touch of the ball. Berbatov's first touch and close control is the best you'd find anywhere. The ease with which he calmly brings down a Scholesy long ball is breathtaking. He's never going to be your 30-35 goal striker, but his link-up play with his partnering striker and most importantly the wingers is exquisite. His third goal in the 7-1 of Blackburn is testament to this fact. He played a neat one-two with Evra, spread the ball across to Nani and got into the box to finish up the move he started himself.
What I admire about Berbatov is not just the footballer, but the man he is. Even after being left out of the team for the Champions League Final against Barca, he's intent on staying at the club. In a recent interview he described leaving United as a step down. Given his age, it's quite understandable he wants to end his career at the highest level and which better place to do that than at the Theatre of Dreams? He's a top professional who wears the jersey of Manchester United with a lot of pride. Berbatov may not be a regular starter anymore, but having one of, if not the most technically gifted striker in your squad is certainly an advantage. Fergie himself was quick to praise him for his attitude after the Champions League final snub. He knows he's at the best club in the world playing under the best manager there is. He has no reason to leave. Cool, calm and collected. There's only one Berba; and he's the man with the #silks (as Rio would put it) is staying at Old Trafford.
There's no denying the fact that Berbatov has been far from every United fan's cup of tea since he joined us three years ago. He's come under a lot of criticism in his three seasons at United. But certainly the fans' frustrations are justified, are they not? We all expected a lot more from the Bulgarian than what he has produced so far. As a matter of fact, any £30m+ striker arouses a high level of expectation among fans. Chicharito's emergence last term didn't make it any easier for him and he found himself relegated to the bench.
But let's look at the other side of the coin for a moment. Forget the statistics and goal returns; forget those two glaring misses against City and his poor European form. Time and time again he's been criticized for his approach to the game and his 'sluggish' nature. "Berba's too slow"; "he needs to add pace to his game". Every mistake he makes his greeted with groans from the crowd who sound like they've had enough. Telling Berbatov to change his style of play is equivalent to telling Chicharito to drop deep and dictate play. The thing with Dimi is he's a different kind of striker. The kind you won't easily find anywhere in the world. I tend to refer to him as 'Zinedine Zidane turned striker''. He oozes class with his every touch of the ball. Berbatov's first touch and close control is the best you'd find anywhere. The ease with which he calmly brings down a Scholesy long ball is breathtaking. He's never going to be your 30-35 goal striker, but his link-up play with his partnering striker and most importantly the wingers is exquisite. His third goal in the 7-1 of Blackburn is testament to this fact. He played a neat one-two with Evra, spread the ball across to Nani and got into the box to finish up the move he started himself.
What I admire about Berbatov is not just the footballer, but the man he is. Even after being left out of the team for the Champions League Final against Barca, he's intent on staying at the club. In a recent interview he described leaving United as a step down. Given his age, it's quite understandable he wants to end his career at the highest level and which better place to do that than at the Theatre of Dreams? He's a top professional who wears the jersey of Manchester United with a lot of pride. Berbatov may not be a regular starter anymore, but having one of, if not the most technically gifted striker in your squad is certainly an advantage. Fergie himself was quick to praise him for his attitude after the Champions League final snub. He knows he's at the best club in the world playing under the best manager there is. He has no reason to leave. Cool, calm and collected. There's only one Berba; and he's the man with the #silks (as Rio would put it) is staying at Old Trafford.
SAF should sack him, in my opinion
ReplyDeleteHe should and deserves to stay
ReplyDeleteI suggest is that he should stay at United cause we cannot afford to buy another striker this season..!
ReplyDeletewe cant sack him!!! this guy is class!!!!!
ReplyDeleteHe is one of a kind striker!! Pure Class
ReplyDelete