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Dimitar Berbatov

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Dimitar Berbatov
Personal information
Full name Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov
Date of birth 30 January 1981 (1981-01-30) (age 28)
Place of birth Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria[1]
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)[2]
Playing position Striker
Club information
Current club Manchester United
Number 9
Youth career
Pirin Blagoevgrad
Senior career1
Years Club Apps (Gls)2
1998–2001 CSKA Sofia 050 (25)
2001–2006 Bayer Leverkusen 154 (69)
2006–2008 Tottenham Hotspur 070 (27)
2008– Manchester United 031 0(9)
National team3
1999– Bulgaria 068 (41)
1 Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 10:54, 26 June 2009 (UTC).

2 Appearances (Goals).

3 National team caps and goals correct as of 10:01, 7 June 2009 (UTC)

Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov (Bulgarian: Димитър Иванов Бербатов IPA: [diˈmitər bɛrˈbatɔf]; born 30 January 1981 in Blagoevgrad)[1] is a Bulgarian footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester United in the Premier League and the Bulgarian national team.[3][4] He has won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year award five times, equalling the number of wins by Hristo Stoichkov.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Berbatov's father, Ivan, was a professional footballer with local outfit Pirin Blagoevgrad, and his mother, Margarita, was a professional handball player.[5] As a youngster, Berbatov supported Milan and modelled himself on Marco van Basten, until Euro '96 in England, when the then fifteen year old discovered a new role model in Alan Shearer,[6] formerly of Newcastle United, even sleeping in a Newcastle shirt. His mother later spoke of Dimitar's dream of playing for Newcastle one day.[7][8][9] Berbatov learned the English language by watching the "Godfather" films.[10] Outside of football, he lists his hobbies as drawing and basketball.[11]

Berbatov is a sponsor of children's charities in his native Bulgaria, supporting five care homes.[12] He also has plans to open a football academy in his hometown.[12]

[edit] Club career

[edit] Early career

Berbatov's career began at the Pirin Blagoevgrad club, and continued until he was spotted by legendary scout and coach Dimitar Penev.

[edit] CSKA Sofia

At the age of just 17, Berbatov moved to CSKA Sofia following in the footsteps of his father, Ivan, who also played for the club as a left winger and later as a defender. He played for CSKA Sofia in the Bulgarian A PFG between 1998 and January 2001, making his debut as an 18-year-old in the 1998–99 season. He started to make his name the following year when he scored 14 goals in 27 league games and won the Bulgarian National Cup in 1999.

In June 2000 he was about to be signed by Italian Serie A side Lecce.[13] Former U.S. Lecce Director of football Pantaleo Corvino stated in an interview[14] that Berbatov had already underwent a medical, but when it came to signing the contract, the move collapsed, probably due to another request[14] by the player himself.

[edit] Bayer Leverkusen

A run of nine goals in 11 games in 2000–01 was enough to persuade Bayer Leverkusen to sign Berbatov in January 2001. Berbatov had a slow start to his Leverkusen career with just 16 goals in his first 67 appearances for the club. He did however play a crucial role in the Champions League during his first season with the club scoring a memorable solo effort against Lyon with an excellent piece of skill, as well as a goal against Liverpool in the quarter finals. He also played a part in the final against Real Madrid coming on as a substitute for Thomas Brdaric after 38 minutes.

In 2001–02, Leverkusen were runners-up in the Fußball-Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal. During the 2002–03 Bundesliga season, Berbatov established his place as the first-choice forward at Bayer Leverkusen, but it was not until the 2003–04 season that he really began to shine, scoring 16 goals in 24 starts. The following two seasons saw him go from strength to strength, netting another 46 goals including five in the Champions League 2004–05, raising awareness of his talent and generating interest from teams throughout Europe.

[edit] Tottenham Hotspur

Speculation surrounded a potential move in 2004 for the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year, but it was May 2006, when Berbatov finally joined Premier League side Tottenham Hotspur for a fee of €16m,[15] (£10.9 million).[16] making him the most expensive Bulgarian player in history. After being granted a work permit, the transfer was completed, and Berbatov joined Tottenham on 1 July 2006. He scored two goals in two minutes in his first match, as a Tottenham player against Birmingham City in a pre-season friendly match.[17]

Berbatov scored his first competitive Tottenham goal two minutes into his home debut in the Premiership game against Sheffield United at White Hart Lane. He built up a rewarding partnership with Robbie Keane in the UEFA Cup, until Spurs' departure to Seville in the quarter-finals, and, despite Martin Jol's rotation of his strikers, Berbatov firmly established himself as the first choice forward at the club. He scored five goals in four games during the group stage of the UEFA Cup, with his performances earning two man-of-the-match awards in the group stages against Besiktas and Club Brugge.

Despite his good form in European competition, Berbatov took a while to adapt to the Premiership. However, he soon began to regain the league form he had shown at Leverkusen with an excellent performance against Wigan Athletic, scoring one and creating the other two in a 3–1 win. On 9 December 2006, Berbatov scored his first Premiership brace for Spurs in a 5–1 victory for his side against Charlton Athletic. Berbatov came on as a second half substitute against Fulham in the FA Cup to score his first two goals in the competition. Berbatov scored his first away goal in the Premiership at Goodison Park against Everton, a first-time shot from around the penalty spot after an Aaron Lennon cross. Spurs went on to win the match 2–1.

Berbatov and Spurs team-mate Robbie Keane were named joint winners of the Premier League Player of the Month award for April, becoming the first players to share the award since Arsenal's Dennis Bergkamp and Edu, jointly claimed the award back in February 2004. He scored the 100th goal of Tottenham's 2006–07 season with the first goal of a 2–0 victory over Charlton Athletic on 7 May 2007.

Berbatov is also one of the few people to have two goals included in the BBC's goal of the month competition shortlist, with his sublime efforts against Wigan Athletic and Middlesbrough, both being included. Berbatov ended the 2006–07 season with 12 goals in 33 appearances in the Premier League, and also chipping in with 11 assists.

Due to his highly impressive displays, especially in the latter half of the season, he won the Tottenham Hotspur player of the season award in 2006–07. Berbatov was also included in the FA Premier League's PFA Team of the Season on 21 April 2007, one of only three players in the team not to play for league winners Manchester United (the other two being Steven Gerrard and Didier Drogba). After Spurs narrowly lost to Arsenal in the North London derby on 22 December 2007, Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger compared Berbatov to Thierry Henry.[18]

His first Spurs Premier League hat-trick came on 29 December 2007 after he bagged four goals in a 6–4 win against Reading.

Berbatov played in his first cup final for Tottenham on 24 February 2008 in the Football League Cup at Wembley Stadium against Chelsea in which he scored an equalising penalty. Tottenham went on to win the game 2–1 after extra time, with Berbatov collecting his first trophy in English football.[19] On 9 March, Berbatov scored a brace of headers in the 4–0 demolition of West Ham United.[20]

This took his Premier League tally of goals for the season to twelve, which was equal to his 2007 league total. He ended the season with 15 league goals and an identical overall record of 23 goals and 11 assists in all competitions. He again scored Spurs' 100th goal of the season in this campaign, hitting the opener in the 1–1 draw at Wigan on 19 April.

The 2008–09 season began in circumstances when Berbatov's desires for greener pastures dominated tabloid headlines. Ongoing rumours of a substantial bid by Manchester United unsettled the striker, and despite training with Tottenham, Berbatov was dropped for the games against Sunderland.[21] and Chelsea.[22] United manager Alex Ferguson sought to quell these rumours, describing his feelings as "less optimistic" about securing new signings before the close of the transfer windows.[23]

[edit] Manchester United

Berbatov playing for Manchester United.

After much speculation, Berbatov completed a move to Manchester United on 1 September 2008 for a fee of around £30.75 million, with Fraizer Campbell joining Tottenham on a season-long loan as part of the deal.[24][25] This came despite Tottenham accepting a bid for Berbatov from Manchester City on the same day.[26] Berbatov's contract to United is for four years,[27] and he wears the number 9 shirt previously worn by Louis Saha. Berbatov later insisted he never even considered a move to Manchester City.[28]

Berbatov marked his Manchester United debut with an assist to a Carlos Tévez goal away to Liverpool but United went on to lose the game 2–1.[29] He scored his first two goals for Manchester United in their 3–0 win away to Aalborg BK in the Champions League group stage on 30 September 2008.[30] He scored the third goal in a 4–0 victory over West Bromwich Albion to mark his first Premier League goal as a Manchester United player. On 29 October 2008, Berbatov assisted Cristiano Ronaldo to open the scoring in the Reds' home game against West Ham United after using deft footwork to get past defender James Collins. On 17 January 2009, he scored a last-minute goal to secure a 1–0 away win over Bolton Wanderers and help United to the top of the Premier League table for the first time in the season.[31] Alex Ferguson defended Berbatov after the Bulgarian was the subject of much criticism for a penalty miss in the FA Cup 2008–09 semi-final against Everton, with Manchester United eventually losing to Everton in the penalty shoot-out.[32] Soon after, Berbatov scored the fifth of United's goals as they came back from 2–0 down at half-time to win 5–2 against his former team, Tottenham Hotspur on 25 April 2009.[33] Manchester United won the Premier League on 16 May 2009 with a 0–0 draw at home to Arsenal, to grant Berbatov his first career league title and make him the first Bulgarian to win the competition.

[edit] Career statistics

Club Season League Cup League Cup Continental Other[34] Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
CSKA Sofia 1998–99 11 3 5 3 – 0 0 0 0 16 6
1999–00 27 14 4 2 – 2 0 0 0 33 16
2000–01 12 8 0 0 – 4 7 0 0 16 15
Total 50 25 9 5 – 6 7 0 0 65 37
Bayer Leverkusen 2000–01 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 0
2001–02 24 8 6 6 0 0 11 2 0 0 41 16
2002–03 24 3 0 0 1 0 7 2 0 0 31 5
2003–04 33 16 3 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 36 19
2004–05 33 20 1 1 0 0 10 5 0 0 44 26
2005–06 34 21 2 3 1 0 2 0 0 0 38 24
Total 154 68 12 13 4 0 30 9 0 0 200 90
Tottenham Hotspur 2006–07 33 12 5 3 3 1 8 7 0 0 49 23
2007–08 36 15 2 2 6 1 8 5 0 0 52 23
2008–09 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Total 70 27 7 5 9 2 16 12 0 0 102 46
Manchester United 2008–09 31 9 3 1 0 0 9 4 0 0 43 14
Total 31 9 3 1 0 0 9 4 0 0 43 14
Career total 379 128 31 24 13 2 61 32 0 0 410 187

Statistics accurate as of match played 27 May 2009[35]

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

CSKA Sofia
Tottenham Hotspur
Manchester United

[edit] Individual

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b "Dimitar Berbatov: factfile - Manchester United". Manchester Evening News. 2 September 2008. http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/manchester_united/s/1065003_dimitar_berbatov_factfile?rss=yes. Retrieved on 4 September 2008. 
  2. ^ Hugman, Barry J. (2008). The PFA Footballers Who's Who 2008–09. Edinburgh: Mainstream Publishing. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-84596-324-8. 
  3. ^ "Players and staff: Dimitar Berbatov". Manchester United. 2 September 2008. http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={FE60904B-C2A8-4E60-9B05-700DBBC29BBC}&section=playerProfile&teamid=458&bioid=93373. Retrieved on 4 September 2008. 
  4. ^ "Berbatov angles for 'dream' move". BBC Sport. 18 August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/t/tottenham_hotspur/7568809.stm. Retrieved on 4 September 2008. 
  5. ^ "Berbatov Supports Bulgarian Nurses in Libya". Bulgaria News. 6 June 2007. http://international.ibox.bg/news/id_681282204. Retrieved on 4 September 2008. 
  6. ^ "No dream duel for Berbatov". UEFA. 18 February 2003. http://www.uefa.com/competitions/ucl/news/kind=1/newsid=54545.html. Retrieved on 10 March 2007. 
  7. ^ Blackburn, Martin (20 October 2007). "Toon-mad Berbatov slept in Shearer shirt". The Sun. http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/sport/football/article365647.ece. Retrieved on 23 October 2007. "He said: "Dimitar never missed a Newcastle game when it was on television. And Shearer was up there with Pelé as a God for him." Another pal, Stefan Damianov, recalled how Berbatov considered himself to be an honorary Geordie as he followed the Toon and grew up" 
  8. ^ "Toon-mad Berbatov slept in Shearer shirt", South Shields Gazette, 20 October 2007, http://www.shieldsgazette.com/nufc/Toonmad-Berbatov-slept-in-Shearer.3398269.jp, retrieved on 23 October 2007 
  9. ^ "Tottenham's Berbatov was Newcastle mad". 19 October 2007. http://www.tribalfootball.com/article.php?id=61451. Retrieved on 23 October 2007. 
  10. ^ "Berbatov excels in the spotlight to put Tottenham through". The Independent. 24 November 2006. http://sport.independent.co.uk/football/european/article2010040.ece. Retrieved on 19 March 2007. 
  11. ^ "Dimitar Berbatov". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/euro_2004/bulgaria/players_to_watch/default.stm. Retrieved on 20 May 2006. 
  12. ^ a b "How Manchester United star Dimitar Berbatov played his way out of poverty". Daily Mirror. 13 September 2006. http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/2008/09/13/from-this-to-a-30m-superstar-115875-20735239/. Retrieved on 13 September 2007. 
  13. ^ "Lecce scatenato: dalla Bulgaria arriva Berbatov" (in Italian). La Gazzetta dello Sport. 15 June 2000. http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2000/giugno/15/Lecce_scatenato_dalla_Bulgaria_arriva_ga_0_00061515933.shtml. Retrieved on 2 March 2009. 
  14. ^ a b ""Che affare il Gila!" Intervista a Pantaleo Corvino (Calcio2000)" (in Italian). goal.com. 17 October 2008. http://www.goal.com/IT/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=916660. Retrieved on 2 March 2009. 
  15. ^ "Nine for Berbatov". tottenhamhotspur.com. http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/articles/nineforberbatov170506.html. Retrieved on 18 May 2006. 
  16. ^ "Berbatov: Spurs on the 'up and up'". premierleague.com. http://www.premierleague.com/fapl.rac?command=setSelectedId&nextPage=enNewsLatest&id=1296628&type=com.fapl.website.news.NewsItem&categoryCode=News. Retrieved on 20 May 2006. 
  17. ^ "Berbatov double sinks Birmingham". BBC Sport. 22 July 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/5206578.stm. Retrieved on 20 August 2007. 
  18. ^ "Wenger: Berbatov Reminds Me Of Henry". Goal.com. 24 December 2007. http://www.goal.com/en/Articolo.aspx?ContenutoId=524780. Retrieved on 2 July 2009. 
  19. ^ Stevenson, Jonathan (24 February 2008). "Tottenham 2–1 Chelsea". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/7256729.stm. Retrieved on 24 February 2008. 
  20. ^ Chowdhury, Saj (9 March 2008). "Tottenham 4–0 West Ham". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7272611.stm. Retrieved on 10 March 2008. 
  21. ^ "Match Squad Update". Tottenham Hotspur. 23 August 2008. http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/articles/matchsquadupdate230808.html. Retrieved on 23 August 2008. 
  22. ^ "Spurs Told Berbatov He Wasn't Wanted At The Bridge". Goal.com. 1 September 2008. http://www.goal.com/en/articolo.aspx?contenutoid=843973. Retrieved on 2 July 2009. 
  23. ^ "Ferguson cools Berbatov rumours". BBC Sport. 28 August 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/7586497.stm. Retrieved on 28 August 2008. 
  24. ^ "Man Utd complete Berbatov switch". BBC Sport. 1 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/7592272.stm. Retrieved on 1 September 2008. 
  25. ^ "Manchester United deal". Tottenham Hotspur. http://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/articles/manchesteruniteddeal020909.html. Retrieved on 1 September 2008. 
  26. ^ "Man Utd complete Berbatov switch". BBC Sport. 1 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/man_city/7592272.stm. Retrieved on 2 July 2009. 
  27. ^ Bartram, Steve (1 September 2008). "Reds sign Berbatov". Manchester United. http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={B4CEE8FA-9A47-47BC-B069-3F7A2F35DB70}&newsid=6617336. Retrieved on 2 September 2008. 
  28. ^ "Berbatov not tempted by Man City". BBC Sport. 12 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/m/man_utd/7612934.stm. Retrieved on 12 September 2008. 
  29. ^ "Liverpool 2–1 Man Utd". BBC Sport. 13 September 2008. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/eng_prem/7601885.stm. Retrieved on 13 September 2008. 
  30. ^ Hibbs, Ben (30 September 2008). "Berbatov Plays It Cool". ManUtd.com. Manchester United. http://www.manutd.com/default.sps?pagegid={F9E570E6-407E-44BC-800F-4A3110258114}&newsid=6619559. Retrieved on 1 October 2008. 
  31. ^ Hassan, Nabil (17 January 2009). "Bolton 0–1 Man Utd". BBC Sport. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/7815605.stm. Retrieved on 17 January 2009. 
  32. ^ "Sir Alex leaps to defence of Berbatov". soccernet.espn.go.com. 20 April 2009. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=639040&cc=5901. Retrieved on 2 July 2009. 
  33. ^ Ashenden, Mark (25 April 2009). "Man Utd 5–2 Tottenham". BBC Sport (British Broadcasting Corporation). http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/eng_prem/8000573.stm. Retrieved on 26 April 2009. 
  34. ^ Includes other competitive competitions, including the FA Community Shield, UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup, FIFA Club World Cup
  35. ^ Endlar, Andrew. "Dimitar Berbatov". StretfordEnd.co.uk. http://www.stretfordend.co.uk/playermenu/berbatov.html. Retrieved on 26 June 2009. 

[edit] External links

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