Former Manchester United striker Dimitar Berbatov has recalled an expletive rant to his agent when it came to following his dream to play for the biggest football club in Manchester.
The Bulgarian admitted he took offence when Man City tried to sign him from Tottenham, where he impressed after spending five years in the Bundesliga. It was Martin Jol who was responsible for taking the striker to England in 2006.
Berbatov went on to score 46 goals in 102 appearances for Spurs before making a dream switch to United in 2008. His career could have gone a different trajectory that year had he opted to sign for City instead.
Mark Hughes wanted to bring Berbatov to City in a late hijack attempt, but the retired star has told The Telegraph that he had no interest in joining the club. It won’t come as a surprise to United fans who know the story already, but a sense of warmth comes with Berbatov’s storytelling on how his United move materialised.
“They wanted to sign me on the last day of the market,” Berbatov explained. “I told my agent ‘f*** off, we’re going to United’. Because of the history, the prestige, the manager, the shirt. I never had any doubt that Old Trafford was the right decision.”
Then Sir Alex Ferguson proceeded to meet Berbatov at Manchester airport, to welcome his new signing before he’d even got to Old Trafford to sign the dotted line.
Berbatov added: “I was shocked because it can be intimidating and especially for me, stepping out the plane and bam you see Sir Alex. I was like, what do I say, how do I address him, will I look stupid? I had all these questions in my head, but he was great. He took us to Carrington and the drive in the car was like science fiction.
“I didn’t even know what to say. It was a perfect day. Exhausting, but perfect, because I had worked so hard to get there.”
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