He's created more than one goal this season by winning the ball back with hard running.
Dimitar Berbatov | 2009/10 Performances
- Thread starter Rood
- Start date
- Status
He's created more than one goal this season by winning the ball back with hard running.
He's not good enough for United.
I see him doing well at a team like Spurs.
or the mighty Leverkusen.
Chelsea usually had a second centre back who had no one else to keep an eye on. Berbatov doesn't have the same movement and workrate as Rooney, he was never going to be likely to get a lot of joy unless he had teammates occupying the other chelsea defenders.
When people start to see you coming, and know what you're going to do... You change it up. A spin in behind - even at Berbapace, could have got him open and on the charge. One or two successful executions and they Chelsea defenders wont be pre-empting his receiving of the ball as much because they'll know they do still have to worry about him going in behind them.
Because it never happened, it was easy to deal with balls into him.
Let's be kind and say United is not the right club for him.
What is frustrating is that he is a skillful player, and yet lacks the basic positioning that all great strikers possess. Inzaghi has not even 10percent of his skills, yet is a lot more lethal in the box with his finishing and getting into great positions for his teammates to deliver passes to. Berbatov has got to realise that he is the finisher, and not creator of goals in a 4-5-1. When we have him upfront alone, he needs to buckle up, keep things simple, and simply make numerous runs into the box, or get away from defenders, so that when the crosses are sent in, or through balls are fed into the box, he will be the recipient, and not the defenders. From what i see, he is fcking lazy or totally inept in positioning, whichever makes it no less painful.
It was difficult for him to just stand there and wait for the chances to come against Chelsea when there were barely any balls played into the box by midfielders.
Agreed that he's a bit of a tactical idiot though, most of the time he doesn't know what to do, where to be, how to play the ball. He's good technically, has a nice shot in him but I still think he doesn't realise that there is a purpose of having him in the team.
Berbatov can be twice the player he is if he just did some of the basic things, like make runs to throw them opposition off, I'm talking about in all directions like Rooney does, it's a nightmare to deal with, anticipate balls, try to get on the end of things when the ball is out wide but he seems to have this type of self indulgent attitude to the game
as if to say these basics, of football are beneath him. He's a great talent but that alone does not guarantee success. He needs to remember the fundamentals, he can be remembered as a skillful player and a great scorer.
How much do you reckon we could get for him if Fergie wanted to flog him this summer?
What is needed on a pitch to make him click and score goals? What doesn't United have which Spurs had?
He has all that is needed here. He has all the skills he need but he just needs to find himself the way to move forward.
All this because he didn't score against Chelsea.
10-12 million, probably from Spurs! We're short of strikers though so I don't think we'd sell, and not for the huge loss we would take. He seems content to just be a bench warmer for the big games though so I doubt he'll want to leave either.
Inzaghi works his bollix off. He runs, he chases, he harries, he gets caught offside, he gesticulates.
I think Inzaghi spends more calories complaining to the linesmen than Berba does running all game long.
More like he didn't do anything against Chelsea add that to the games we played against Arsenal, Liverpool, Inter etc.....
Spurs had a lack of good ball playing players. They sold Carrick previously who they had been using to play the ball around, so they were very happy with him dropping off and being a part time advanced playmaker for them. And then the rest of the players would get the ball to him and then make runs for him to find them.
As well, Keane and Berbatov had a fantastic understanding. There were times when it was just those 2 linking up to create something, not needing the rest of the team.
In a team where we have other players who can play the ball around, other players who can create chances and where we expect our strikers to fulfill the role of a striker completely before worrying about extras, its just not the same for him.
He was the main man, what suited him came first at Spurs. At United he's just one of many good players and he's probably the least adaptable of all of them, as well as the oldest. So it wouldnt make a lot of sense to build the side around him at this point.
Also, even at Spurs he wasnt brilliant performance-wise in each game. It was every 2 or 3 that he had a really good game. He did produce the goods for them though even at times when he wasnt playing well, as a striker really should.
Did Berbatov ever play lone striker for Tottenham?
Not that I know of. Defoe was his partner at first in his first season, if I recall. Then Robbie Keane had better form so he became his partner. Then in his second season Spurs had Defoe, Keane, Bent and Berbatov. So he was always going to be in a 2.
So it's pretty much final. The man can and never could do a good job as a lone striker.
I can actually sense that happening in January next year
He may have done it a few times at Leverkusen or for Bulgaria. I only know about most of his time in England.
You might want to check out the earlier posts in this thread. There are plenty of non believers who have voiced their opinions long before we watch him fail time after time to make any runs into the box offering our useless midfielders an option.
I would say perhaps the fact that teams tend to stick 11 men behind the ball asking us to break them down whereas Spurs would not face such a wall due to their lesser quality probably means Berbatov had to work far less at Spurs.
Pretty much what everyone said about Rooney at the start of this season. Said he must be be played in the hole blah blah blah
He hasn't played a lot of lone striker but, that doesn't mean he'll never do the job. He's already done it well for us this season but, people don't count the games against Wolves/Bolton - the one other game he has played that role in for us - against Chelsea, he did okay but, some of that goes on the overall team performance.
If judgement as his ability to ever play lone striker against a big team is based on the game on Saturday, then probably can make the conclusion.
His game isn't ideally suited for it but, with the whole team playing well - he certainly can do it. Lone striker doesn't mean 1 player doing everything on his own. Even SAF said for the Bayern game they'll have to figure out formation/tactics to best use him. He never was suddenly become Rooney in his current form as lone striker. Even took Rooney a while to do that.
That was mostly said a couple of seasons ago when he started learning to lead the line. A bit last season. And little this season.
At Rooney's rate of learning the role, perhaps Berbatov could be a brilliant lone striker by 31?
i like berbatov, and i still think he has been brilliant
Rooney also runs his ass off and busts his ass to get on the end of every ball played his way. Rooney is always moving about up front and stretching the defence. You need this mentality as a lone striker. You need to be willing to do a lot more work.
These are things that Berbatov doesn't do.
Puts in perspective the commentary about his being lead the line striker. There are few in the world that can do it as well as him and expecting a player that really hasn't done that much of it to dominate a game is at best wishful (which we all were).
He's a good partner for Rooney. Our season is not only made up of a few big games where he doesn't play. Contributed to success in all the "lesser" games that give the same points as the "big" games. Can't think of many players that would be back up to Rooney as a lone striker and do a better job.
The whole team needs to step up - not just Berbatov.
see i think the criticism the lad is getting now is somewhat silly. he was in hot form prior to Chavski game, wasn't he?
I don't like him as player and i think he was much worst in the first part of the season but having a go at him now is just daft.
silly thread.
His best has already gone.
Why? Is his best a few goals against a few premier league nobodies? In the biggest match of the season he put in feck all effort. It's the perfect time to revive the thread. Let's see what he manages against Bayern, but I can guarantee you there won't be much urgency about his game.
There are plenty who would do a better job as a lone forward than Berbatov, that much is obvious.
I dont think we bought him to fill in for Rooney though. Thats just where we've found outself after his position last season failing (link between midfield and attack), his lack of goals in big matches, and our midfield. Since the summer we've made the best of a bad situation to some extent. And Berbatov has proven himself to some extent - in easier matches as a parter for Rooney. And against Bolton he proved he can play as a lone forward against easy teams. Its still miles from what we had intended when we smashed our record for him. Truth is, most people were expecting him to step up and be better than he was at Spurs. But week by week the expectations have dropped.
As it is, he really doesnt offer enough for a player on high wages. And I think that'll be a huge factor with regards to his future. Get a goal and put in a good performance against Bayern and he'll certainly buy himself time. But not do a great deal and for me, enough is enough. Because we didnt buy him as a bit part player and backup, he was purchased as another star player, a first team star player and a player to play in all kinds of matches (See last season where he started more big matches up front than either Rooney or Tevez, because Rooney had a few on the left). Recouping anything on him will no doubt be put towards what we already have to spend and we can go with something which fits our needs much better.
If we want to carry on with the 4-3-3, 4-5-1 formation then we can get a player like Gourcuff, Ozil, Silva or Jovetic to play as the attacking midfielder/link man and each of them could also be an option out wide.
If we wanted to improve our 4-4-2 so that it wont be lame against other sides with 2 in the middle and would put up a good fight against a 3 in the middle, then if we cant get Fabregas we should get Ever Banega. A midfield of he and Fletcher or he and Carrick would give us a lot more control and keep the team moving much better whilst holding on to the ball better and creating lots more chances from the middle of the park.
Berbatov's wages would no doubt come in handy for the negotiations, and we have Macheda, Welbeck and Diouf coming through as backups as well as Owen able to do a job if we need more experience. It may be we dont need to sell to bring in other big name players, thats just what I expect will happen. And if it does, you better believe Berbatov's name is near the top of the list at this point in time, until he completely proves himself against all teams - not just the weak ones, where other players could also do just as good a job, maybe better.
Good post. My thoughts exactly.
So the usual anti Berba brigade are in here sprouting their bile after the Chelsea game eh. Some things never change. The cafe must always have a scape goat.
We really should have played a 442 on Saturday.
Playing a 433 and expecting Berbatov to do Rooneys job was a mistake from Fergie.
Playing a 433 and expecting Berbatov to do Rooneys job was a mistake from Fergie.
Too true.
But when it happens with Berba in the team it's ''his fault'' and it's him ''who is not providing options for our midfield''.
People would have been here saying we should have played 433 if we had played 442.
"Expecting Berbatov and Macheda to get the goals was a mistake from Fergie"
I'm sure it was a tough call and just because we lost doesnt mean it was the wrong one. We might have been even worse with a 442.
Exactly. All the thicko's have come out of the wood works in here.
A little less of your histrionics please.
Berbatov is not being made the scapegoat for one loss. He was shite in this game and highlighted the flaws he has shown us all year - his laziness - yet again. The rest of the team was also shite though - no arguments there. But as Berbatov continues week after week not to show the balls, the desire or hunger to actually work his bollox off for United then threads like this will remain at the top of this forum.
My prediction is that this thread will stay in the top 2 or 3 pages until he's gone.
- Status