Farewell, Berbatov!

DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA – JULY 18: Dimitar Berbatov during the MTN Football Invitational match between Amazulu and Manchester United from Moses Mabhida Stadium on July 18, 2012 in Durban, South Africa. (Photo by Steve Haag/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

The United faithfuls would still remember the 2008 transfer deadline day when United scooped up the transfer of Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham Hotspur at a club record fee and formed a quartet of stars with Rooney, Ronaldo and Tevez at Old Trafford, which could send shivers down the spine of every defender and rightfully went on to be named as the ‘fantastic four’ or ‘fab four’ for the remainder of the season.

What made the transfer even sweeter for every United fan was the fact that Berbatov snubbed United’s cross city rivals, who were ready to spend big on Berbatov. Instead, the Bulgarian chose the then reigning European and English Champions over money spenders City to showcase his class.

Fast forward 4 years and its the same transfer deadline day of the 2012 season when United announce the transfer of their once prized scoop to Fulham. Anyone who’s been following Manchester United for these four years must now be facing a myriad of conflicting emotions: regret that a true artist of football had to part ways with United; relief that he can now again resume performing magic on the pitch.

Ever since his big money arrival from Tottenham, there have been a set of United supporters who have admired this true footballing genius, but there have always been an another set who would criticize his quite visible lethargic demeanor on field, which contradicted the United style. While there were some others, who could not strike a balance between their judgement of the player.

But whether you ‘understood’ him or not, you just cannot ignore his divine gifts. First touch, vision, passing, finishing, awareness and most glaring of them all; his exquisite control of the football. Drop a ball from a 100 storey building and he will bring it down to his feet as if he is wearing boots made up of some football magnet.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – SEPTEMBER 19: Dimitar Berbatov of Manchester United scores his team

His United career kickstarted only during the record breaking 19th title triumph of United in the 2010-2011 season where he scored goals aplenty and became the joint top scorer in the league. There were some eye catching performances during that time. Most noticeably was the hattrick against Liverpool, which made him the only player since legendary Stan Pearson in 1946 to score 3 goals in a match against Liverpool. His second goal in that match where he controlled a cross with his thigh and then scored with a overhead kick it past the hapless Pepe Reina is a poetry in motion for every football fan to cherish.

Further hattricks against Blackburn and Birmingham in the same season saw him enter the record books alongside Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Denis Law to score three hattricks in a season. Not to forget his 5 goal haul in a match against Blackburn, which took him into the Premier League record books alongside Andy Cole and Alan Shearer. Such was his character that even with such performances, he always preferred to skip the hype of post match interviews and celebrations and would rather head straight back towards home to spend time with family. However, these performances were enough to put him into the United folklore.

When he was on song, he was unplayable but on his off days, he can just go anonymous. 2010-2011 season was the reflection of the same where his early season form earned him the Premier League’s golden boot award but all his goals came in bundles, where he would score a treble in a match but then go several matches without scoring. This inconsistency of his took a bit of the limelight off him while Chicharito started making a name for himself with his immaculate finishing abilities and scoring at important stages of the season which even earned him a place in the Champions League final ahead of Berbatov.

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – FEBRUARY 23: Dimitar Berbatov of Manchester United is replaced by Danny Welbeck (R) during the UEFA Europa League Round of 32 second leg match between Manchester United and AFC Ajax at Old Trafford on February 23, 2012 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Michael Regan/Getty Images)

With Chicharito’s growing stature and Danny Welbeck’s successful stint on loan at Sunderland, Berbatov gradually started falling down in the United’s pecking order the following season. Moreover, after the defeat in the 2011 Champions League final against Barcelona, Sir Alex Ferguson called for quick, more incisive and up-tempo style of football at Old Trafford which clashed with Berbatov’s style of picking up the loose ball, assessing how best to use it by bringing down the pace of the game to his own level before delivering it to another. It was soon put across to him that his style no more suited the United style of football.

Dimitar Berbatov took his demotion from first choice striker to 4th choice with utmost grace and professionalism. Not even once he voiced his frustration in the public even though he was provoked many a times by the media. He always took part in the training and worked as hard as he would have done in the previous season and was always available to put his best whenever he was called upon the field. His 9 goals in 11 starts last season just proves the same.

In the current season, the addition of Robin van Persie and Angelo Henriquez into the attacking options which already includes Rooney, Welbeck, Chicharito and Macheda meant that Berbatov has to move on as he was simply too good to be just sitting on the bench. No matter how bad any Berbatov fan at United would be feeling right now but he/she should be really relieved to see such a true professional leaving for pastures new and resume his artistry on a new platform once again. People can certainly argue that he deserved better but it was just bad luck that the styles of football clashed and all must now wish him well for the future. So, here’s from every United fan ; FAREWELL BERBATOV!