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What's the story?
Former Manchester United and Dimitar Berbatov may have played a slightly different role during his time at Kerala Blasters, but he believes that it was not a difficult role at all.
Berbatov, who moved to Kerala Blasters last summer, had played as a forward throughout his career. However, under former Manchester United assistant manager Rene Meulensteen and ex-Liverpool and Manchester City keeper David James, the Bulgarian had played the role of a midfielder.
Despite this shift in the role though, Berbatov found it easy to adapt. "(Playing in midfield) was easy. When you know how to read football, it is easier for some players," he said on Soccer AM.
In case you didn’t know...
Berbatov was one of the biggest stars to have signed for an ISL side last season, along with the likes of ex-Tottenham Hotspur captain Robbie Keane and former Manchester United defender Wes Brown.
The heart of the matter
Speaking on the TV show, Berbatov opened up about his time in India, where he played is first, and as of yet, the only season. The former Premier League golden boot winner even went on to call his time in the subcontinent as “an adventure”.
"It was completely different for me. The way I used to train, preparing for the games,” he said. "The game, the environment as well, it is a different life. It was an adventure. People were so nice and it was a good five months."
Although he said that one cannot compare the ISL to the Premier League, Berbatov did go on to state that playing in India was difficult for him due to his advancing age.
"You cannot compare it to the Premier League, obviously. It wasn't easy for me. When you're 37, you find things a bit more difficult," he said.
What’s next?
Since his stint in Kochi, Berbatov has gone on to act in a Bulgarian film, ‘Revolution X’, where he plays the role of a gangster. While he has followed in the footsteps of his Red Devils predecessor Eric Cantona, Berbatov’s it now remains to be seen whether he continues playing next season, or whether he hangs up his boots.
Author’s take
Having scored only one goal from nine appearances for the Blasters, many would be surprised at Berbatov’s statement about his own performance. However, we need to take into consideration that he did play as a midfielder, and scoring the goals would not exactly have been at the top of his priority list in that new role for him.
