Patience is a Virtue

Talk about hastily drawing conclusions. Barely three games into Dimiter Berbatov’s Manchester United’s career and the temperamental Bulgarian is already being whispered about as another of Sir Alex Ferguson’s white elephants.

The number 9 has thus far been a noticeably ineffectual force for his new club; appearing unfit and unable to link up with United’s other forwards. Writing in his weekly column in The Daily Mirror Stan Collymore, a man who should know a thing-or-two about squandered talent, remarked that: “… unless (Berbatov) bucks his ideas up, he could find himself on the bench for Manchester United.”

However such a judgement seems astonishingly ill-considered given that Berbatov has proven international and domestic pedigree. In 63 international appearances for Bulgaria the forward, who also captains his national team, has scored an impressive 41 goals and in his two years at Tottenham he achieved similarly impressive results. Indeed given that Berbatov only appeared in a few of Spur’s pre-season games his lack of form and fitness can hardly be considered a surprise.

Sir Alex Ferguson has reluctantly admitted that his latest signing is still searching for his best form but he remains justifiably confident that Berbatov will flourish. Ferguson said: “When we understand how good he is in terms of his movement and ability to lead the line, then we’ll get the best use out of him.” On Saturday afternoon in United’s match against Bolton the football-public were treated to a taste of just what a United team, with Berbatov in tow, are capable of. The introduction of Wayne Rooney in the last few minutes of the match seemed to inspire Berbatov to produce the kind of elegant, effortless football that persuaded Manchester United to invest £30 odd million pounds in his talent.

Although Berba could never be described as the missing piece in United’s jigsaw given that last season they won a European Cup and Premier League double. It is fair to suggest that his sheer size and physicality makes him unique to United’s two other senior centre forwards- Carlos Tevez and Wayne Rooney. At 6 foot 2 inches Berbatov is able to act as a reference point for all of United’s attacks and he is also able to perform equally competently as the front man in a 4-5-1 formation.

Whilst physical limitations may continue to restrict his influence in the immediate future, there should be little doubt that Berbatov will eventually make a significant impact at Old Trafford. His whole persona is suited to everything that comes with playing for Manchester United and as he showed briefly on Saturday afternoon whatever happens, it is guaranteed to be entertaining.