Debate: Can Berbatov Succeed At Man United?

"The red shirt is a really, really big thing for me. The people around me know that I play to enjoy, to entertain the fans. I don’t play for the money. If I wanted to play for the money, I would accept Manchester City's offer or Chelsea's. I want to play for the biggest club in the world, that’s why I’m here.”

Real Madrid might have some reservations concerning that “biggest club” thing but yes, the great Bulgarian explorer Dimitar Berbatov has eventually become a Manchester United player!

So what if it took, according to some sources, two years-Man United apparently were in line for his signature in the 2006 summer!- for the transaction to come to fruition? So what if Sir Alex Ferguson had to rush to the Manchester airport to claw Berbatov right out of Man City’s mouth? So what if Berbatov left his Spurs mates disgruntled and without bidding a customary farewell?

All those issues should by now have rushed out of the window like maths tables galloping out of a six-year old’s head. Because at long last, Dimitar Berbatov has achieved his dream of playing at one of the best and most glamorous clubs in world football and because at long last Sir Alex Ferguson has recruited a player who could make their football that much more efficient and entertaining.

The Glorious Past

And the immediate notion is that Dimitar Berbatov shall be a huge hit at Old Trafford; that all his lofty dreams and ambitions shall be realized at the Theatre of Dreams; that Berbatov shall become a Man United legend…..

And indeed, it would be hard to argue against that idea given his terribly marvelous record in English football so far. In 102 matches in two seasons for Tottenham Hotspur, Berbatov has scored 46 goals. But perhaps more crucially, rather than linger in the opposition penalty area like a wily old fox in the box, Berbatov has actually created several of his own goals and has been the architect of numerous breath taking moves.

Berbatov’s arrival at White Hart Lane was like the coming of monsoon after decades. Berbatov became inspiration personified at Spurs and while all talks about the Lilywhites breaking into the Top Four in the Premier League have been largely paper-selling tomfoolery, it can hardly be denied that the presence of Berbatov, who played in the 2002 UEFA Champions League final against the might Real Madrid for Bayer Leverkusen if you may remember, must have been the source of chimera for Spurs.

Even back in Germany, he was a vital source of hope and goals for Bayer Leverkusen. After a cold start to his Bayer career (he scored 16 goals in his first 67 matches for the ”Factory Squad”), he shifted into top gear and led the club by example. When he eventually left Leverkusen for north London in the summer of 2006 for £10.9 million, he had racked up 90 goals in 195 appearances for Bayer.

At Manchester United

At 6ft 2 ½ in, Dimitar Berbatov is one of the tallest strikers in Europe but his stature does not deter him from being very tricky. He can hold the ball upfront, shield it with his body from his marker and then shoot past the goalkeeper from the narrowest of angles. Add to that his sudden burst of pace, vision to pick out teammates, propensity to create space for himself, innate magical touch and finesse and you have a player who could, should and would light up Old Trafford.

Dimitar Berbatov is the balm to Sir Alex Ferguson’s headache in regard to finding an out-and-out striker. Because while Wayne Rooney and Carlos Tevez both are world-class strikers, they do not score that many goals, relying heavily on Cristiano Ronaldo to hit the back of the opposition’s net.

The search for the Holy Grail for Sir Alex then seems to be over. Carlos Queiroz’s departure from Old Trafford implies that Sir Alex would have to do some extra paperwork pertaining to the team’s tactics especially in Europe but Berbatov’s arrival to Man United certainly gives him options, which he shall exploit to the maximum.

Yet Still…..

Yet somehow a hint of doubt lingers on. Although Berbatov’s playing abilities are undisputable his demeanor does remain a matter of concern. That for a player of his stature and ambition, leaving Spurs for Man United is something that is expected but sulking and acting unprofessionally when Spurs didn’t allow him to leave earlier on in the summer is certainly unsavory behaviour.

So far Berbatov has featured for clubs where he has been a huge and influential figure, almost the centre of attention almost all the time. While at Bayer, it was he who became the focus after the departure of Michael Ballack to Bayern Munich, at Spurs it was again Berbatov who hit most of the headlines.

At Manchester United though, things would be quite different. Sir Alex Ferguson is a shrewd, no-nonsense and almost uncompromising football manager who treats all his players equally. So while Berbatov can surely expect Sir Alex to put his arms around him in the first few weeks to enable him to settle into the Man United realm smoothly, he should be prepared to show more humility and accept that he wouldn’t get extra preference from the manger although the latter did (reportedly) gallop to the airport and drove him in his Bentley with the soon to become eighth most expensive footballer in world football hiding under a cover on the back seat.

Will He Succeed?

Dimitar Berbatov is indeed a world class striker whom Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger once compared to Thierry Henry. Seduced by the Premier League in the mid-1990s, he taught himself the English language by repeatedly watching the Godfather movies, (reportedly) slept in a Newcastle United shirt and always dreamt of playing in the Premiership for a big club.

So far Berbatov has played in the Premiership for two seasons and he has succeeded. And at the moment he is at a truly big club in the form of Manchester United. But now comes the proverbial moment of truth. Because playing for a big club is one thing, playing and succeeding at a big club is quite another.

Can Dimitar Berbatov succeed in his “dream” club and script his very own fairytale? Let’s wait and watch.

Subhankar Mondal