Dimitar Berbatov Needs To Step It Up

t three months after his flash-gun popping arrival, Berbatov was considered a dud. Ferguson found himself called upon to defend his expensive recruit.

"I am delighted with the way things are going and I am especially pleased by Dimitar's progress in settling into the team," a belligerent Ferguson told the Sun newspaper. "I have the feeling that we are about to see the best of Berbatov."

The manager's comments were received as so much hubris.

"Dimitar's stats are incredible," Sir Alex told Mirror readers. "He did more running against Middlesbrough last week than any of the front players—including Rooney."

"He did more yards, more than almost all of the players. So Berbatov is getting involved a lot, but where we want him, of course, is in the last third, in the box that is where he can be a real threat."

A discussion of Berbatov's running power was not what United's legion of fans had in mind when the Bulgarian moved down from north London. Goals, goals, goals were written into the Berbatov promissory note. After all, this was the scorer-playmaker supreme United had chased for two years.

Nothing could defuse the mounting dissatisfaction, not even a crucial goal away at Bolton, nor the breath-taking demonstration of virtuosity with which Berbatov  bamboozled a West Ham defender to create the opening goal in United's routine home win over the east London side.

Media critics rushed into print to dismiss the player as lazy, lacking the pace and work-rate to contribute effectively to a team built to counter-attack at speed. There were concerns that Berbatov failed to influence games with the authority of a £30 million-plus player and couldn't play with Rooney.

The irascible and often unreasonable ex-United boss Tommy Docherty seemed, at last, to speak for many when he described Berbatov as an "absolute disaster." Docherty observed that the Bulgarian "doesn't seem interested" and "should look at Carlos Tevez and see the way he always grafts to win the ball back."

Ferguson continued to offer Berbatov his pubic support but the manager's true feelings were revealed in his team selections. As United hit the business end of the season, Berbatov was moved to the sidelines.

It was a humiliating retreat by a proud manager, seized upon by the nation's fourth estate after Berbatov's dismal missed penalty in a FA Cup semifinal against Everton.

Writing in the Guardian, Daniel Taylor reflected on "the virtual disappearance of a player who was signed, lest it be forgotten, on the basis of Ferguson's unrelenting and almost obsessive belief that he would elevate the European champions to a new tier of greatness."

Taylor's prose was a prelude to a comprehensive destruction of Berbatov's right to be considered a champion footballer.

"Ferguson, is not even willing to accept his £30.75m signing, the scorer of 23 goals for Tottenham Hotspur last season, has taken a backward turn," Taylor continued.

"The lesson of history is that Ferguson will publicly defend his players even when it is blindingly obvious that something has not quite clicked. Berbatov has scored 13 goals in 36 games, including four appearances as a substitute.

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