He's cover for rooney now, thats his role in the squad i feel. A pity because he was very good last season but our style now wont suit him and he hasnt really looked good in the limited chances that he's got. will still get games though, we play enough games to keep 4 strikers contented.
Berbatov | Fulham player
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To be fair he's played twice, both with Owen as his strike partner (and in one of the games he was all over the place, including centre back, and in the other he was subbed with 20-30mins to go).
He's not been good by any standards, but with the way he's been used so far this season I can't say I'm surprised. I'm rather baffled actually by SAF. If this was the way he was planning to use him, he should've just sold him to PSG. Seems like such a waste.
SAFs always preferred to have quality striker on the bench. he perhaps feels its better to have him in the squad than sell him for 15mil odd that PSG might have paid for him.
The lack of game time is what has surprised me too. expected much more game time than what he has got till now. the worst thing is that berba has always been a confidence player, an impact sub he is NOT. so if he's only getting CC games and the odd sub appearance, selling him off in the summer might have been better for all parties concerned.
but then, 1 long term injury to rooney is all it'l take to prove his importance in the team. one thing am sure of, he has far too much quality to be poor if given a run of games. with our current system, it'l be tough to give him that. but as i said, he's our back up to rooney i feel.
Another thing and perhaps the most important reason is how good welbeck has been this season and how quickly he's gelled in with the rest. i dont think anyone expected that. Yes, we all expected him to have a good season but nothing like what he's been having so far. many predicted him to be ahead of berba come the end of the season, thats how long we thought it'd take. well, it didnt and thats what caught SAF off guard i feel. he didnt really expect welbeck to be as good as he's been this quickly. which is why he kept hold of berba. had he known, am pretty sure berba would have been off in the summer.
I see you also missed the memo like I did...
Not forgetting that superb hat trick against the scousers either
True Erica, his best game for us.
Berba not playing football is a waste and a shame for football fans.
Very much so, all that talent left on the bench
I wish we could play all our strikers at once. Although that's probably a little unrealistic.
Rooney and berba as mid two, welbeck and macheda on the wings and owen and chicharito upfront.
I think you're all taking the Bulgarian butterfly bit a little too seriously.
This may or may not be true.
Diouf in goal? Or is He the force that binds them all?
To be fair he has been given opportunities in the same way Lindegaard has been. But unlike the hopefully Great Dane, he hasn't grabbed the chances offered to him yet.
It's been well documented that I'm not his biggest fan by some people but the start of last season when we relied on him showed me what a player he could be. But since February he's been a shadow of that player to the point where I now struggle to see how he fits in barring 1 or 2 injuries.
Reports of Valencia coming in for him ( admittedly from the Star).
Berbatov should move for the good of his career, in my opinion. It's all well and good saying he'll play his part, and that we'll have injuries and he'll fill in when that happens, but his position in the squad seems very clear currently.
He should be playing every single weak, perhaps even as the main creative and goal-scoring threat in the team. His ability is enormous, though I get the impression that he feels somewhat intimidated playing in a team whereby there are other players of such ability (could be wrong - it's just my view of the situation).
He should be playing every single weak, perhaps even as the main creative and goal-scoring threat in the team. His ability is enormous, though I get the impression that he feels somewhat intimidated playing in a team whereby there are other players of such ability (could be wrong - it's just my view of the situation).
You could well be right. Whether or not it's because he's intimidated the most surprising thing about his career at United so far is how often he's seemed to lack confidence and self-belief. He seemed like the type of player who always thought he belonged at a club like United but the swagger he used to have in the way he played the game has all but disappeared. A real shame.
I dunno, Berba often seems frustrated by the players around him; hardly the mark of someone who feels overawed by his teammates' abilities...
Berbatov strikes me as the kind of player who wouldn't be particularly phazed by sitting on the bench for months. The way he talks he'd prefer to warm the bench for a big club rather than play regularly at a decent club. Similar to Owen.
Its not because of a lack of opportunity he is where he is currently.
Berba needs to re-invent himself as I don't see him getting much game time unless we have a series of injuries up front.
Berba needs to re-invent himself as I don't see him getting much game time unless we have a series of injuries up front.
I have nothing but respect for this fella, kept his mouth shut despite being relegated to a fourth choice. but he has never been a good option for us. i think he should.move.
Except when he was top scorer last season?
he may have been top scorer but his goals were very bunched up dont you think?
he didnt score in alot more games than he scored in, and he hasnt scored in Europe for 3 years!!!!!
I believe he will be sold in january if the right offer comes in
SAF will look at the other striker options and say feck it let him off.
SAF will look at the other striker options and say feck it let him off.
Quality.
He scores in spurts like Rooney.
From Last season his scoring record including his games this season.
10113000000000050110000320000000100100000000000
Splitting it up into 10 game sections he scored the following number of goals per 10 game segment
6 - 7 - 5 - 2
Having a record of anything above 1 in 2 is considered as very good in the EPL.
From Last season his scoring record including his games this season.
10113000000000050110000320000000100100000000000
Splitting it up into 10 game sections he scored the following number of goals per 10 game segment
6 - 7 - 5 - 2
Having a record of anything above 1 in 2 is considered as very good in the EPL.
You can feel uneasy around other team-mates without coming off on the surface as looking anxious around them. I've only ever really noticed this frustration consistently with Nani, mind. Everyone seems to get pissed off with him, though.
He looks a completely different person on the pitch to the one that played at Tottenham, in my opinion, and it is interesting to note is that his best run of form for United co-incided with Rooney's spell out last year. It's a bit difficult to do anything more than guess given that we don't actually know the players personally, but that's my opinion.
The difference in body language and facial expression between him at Spurs and him at United, for me, is massively noticeable. Could just be the pressure of playing for United, to be fair.
I bet you didn't complain when he scored in "spurts" against Liverpool though.Could Berbatov be performing better ? Yeah but I still it's really unfair to criticize the fact that he hasn't spread around his goals more.
He scored the most winners in the league last season. I don't understand when people try to take away the fact that he played well for us last season.
His spread of goals (in terms of games scored in) was similar to Tevez, the other top scorer in the league and a player generally considered to have carried City to an extent last season.
You can feel uneasy around other team-mates without coming off on the surface as looking anxious around them. I've only ever really noticed this frustration consistently with Nani, mind. Everyone seems to get pissed off with him, though.
He looks a completely different person on the pitch to the one that played at Tottenham, in my opinion, and it is interesting to note is that his best run of form for United co-incided with Rooney's spell out last year. It's a bit difficult to do anything more than guess given that we don't actually know the players personally, but that's my opinion.
The difference in body language and facial expression between him at Spurs and him at United, for me, is massively noticeable. Could just be the pressure of playing for United, to be fair.
I'm getting a sense of deja vu here, Eric...
He definitely played well for us last season up until about February. You can't take that away from him.
Will be very surprised to see him sold in Jan. Will be even more surprised if he is a Utd player this time next year though.
As for last season not sure why anyone can take away from his 1st half of the season. He was really good.
Sadly for him that is it. He is approaching 3.5 seasons now and he has been a bit of a flop for the vast majority of it. I dont see how anyone can dispute that.
It is clear that Fergie does not have plans for him. He has not been the signing most of us thought he would have been. I am sure Ferguson is annoyed by how it has all turned out
It is crazy to think that a £30 million signing (not his fault I know) is barely even a bit part player since last February.
As for last season not sure why anyone can take away from his 1st half of the season. He was really good.
Sadly for him that is it. He is approaching 3.5 seasons now and he has been a bit of a flop for the vast majority of it. I dont see how anyone can dispute that.
It is clear that Fergie does not have plans for him. He has not been the signing most of us thought he would have been. I am sure Ferguson is annoyed by how it has all turned out
It is crazy to think that a £30 million signing (not his fault I know) is barely even a bit part player since last February.
personally i feel very sorry for him. he was our top scorer last year before being banished to the bench. in recent times rooney, hernandez, wellbeck, owen and even giggsy (basle). he gets criticised for not trying etc but when he has been gven a chance its clear that he is really really trying to battle for a place. unfortunatley he looks so short of confidence that he's a shadow of the real berbatov. also, the harder he tries the worse he looks. berbs playing well is carefree and the ability oozes of him him easily / naturally without thought.
whilst really appreciating his abillity (arguably the most naturally talented player we have) i have never been a huuuuuuge fan but as i say...at the moment feel really sorry for him.
whilst really appreciating his abillity (arguably the most naturally talented player we have) i have never been a huuuuuuge fan but as i say...at the moment feel really sorry for him.
The saddest part about it all is that he isnt really a great option coming off the bench either. has a poor record scoring goals from there and he wont even be the first choice off the bench if we needed a goal.
am sure had welbeck given any indication of being this good right from the off and settling down in the team so quick, berba would have been off this summer. Welbeck has caught us all by surprise even Sir Alex i feel.
am sure had welbeck given any indication of being this good right from the off and settling down in the team so quick, berba would have been off this summer. Welbeck has caught us all by surprise even Sir Alex i feel.
Agreed. As soon as we signed Owen up for another year I was confused as to why we'd keep both. If he doesn't go in January can you really see us activating his option for another year?
I agree with this 100%. He and Nani carried us for the first half of the season and thank god for that - we wouldn't have won the league without them being in such good form. However, for the most of his time here he hasn't been the player we all hoped he would and his days are numbered, sadly.
Has there ever been a player for Manchester United who has conjured up as much debate in his time here as Dimitar Berbatov?
I'm struggling to think of any.
I'm struggling to think of any.
"Flop" is too strong a word, especially for someone who finishes as the Golden Boot at the end of a season. He hasn't been as good as we'd hoped, perhaps, but it's going too far too say he's been a 'flop'. Berbatov was the main reason we won the league last year, after all.