Dimitar Berbatov

The Gift

Dimitar Ivanov Berbatov (Bulgarian: Димитър Иванов Бербатов, [diˈmitər bɛrˈbatɔf]; born 30 January 1981) is a Bulgarian footballer who plays as a striker for Manchester United of England and is the all-time leading goalscorer for the Bulgarian national team. He has won the Bulgarian Footballer of the Year a record seven times, surpassing the number of wins by Hristo Stoichkov.

Born in Blagoevgrad, Berbatov began his football career with his local club, Pirin Blagoevgrad, but joined CSKA Sofia as a 17-year-old in 1998. In January 2001, he was signed by Bayer Leverkusen, and 18 months later, he played in his first UEFA Champions League final, coming on as a substitute for Thomas Brdarić in the 2002 final against Real Madrid. After five-and-a-half years with Leverkusen, he was signed by Tottenham Hotspur, before joining Manchester United two years later. He played in his second Champions League final in 2009, competing against Barcelona. Berbatov is one of four players in Premier League history to have scored five goals in a single Premier League match.

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 Cup in 1999.

At the age of 18 Berbatov was kidnapped following a training session as Bulgarian gangster Georgi Iliev, who has since been killed, tried to coerce the striker to sign for his own club, Levski Kjustendil.

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

Berbatov scored his first goal of the 2009–10 season against Wigan Athletic on 22 August 2009, scoring the second goal of a 5–0 away win. On 3 October 2009, three days after an inspiring performance against Wolfsburg in the Champions League, he produced a scissor-kick finish for the first of United's two equalisers against Sunderland. He scored again on 31 October with a sublime control and finish against Blackburn Rovers  but he got an injury in that game that kept him out of the team for more than a month. He scored again after nearly two months against Hull on the 27 December 2009. He scored the fourth goal in the very next game, a 5–0 home win against Wigan Athletic. Dimitar scored his ninth goal in the Premier League in the 3–1 defeat to Everton. That goal also meant that he had scored five goals in his last five league starts. His tenth league goal came against Fulham after a run of strong performances. He also provided the assist for Wayne Rooney's second. On 27 March 2010, he scored his first league brace for the club in a 4–0 away win over Bolton Wanderers.

Berbatov came under criticism from some sections of supporters due to his disappointing goal return. This led to suggestions that he might leave United in the summer transfer window after just two seasons at Old Trafford, speculation which was denied by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Berbatov scored United's first goal of pre-season on 16 July 2010, in a 3–1 friendly win over Celtic at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada. On 8 August, he scored United's third goal in the 92nd minute of their 3–1 win over Chelsea in the 2010 Community Shield. After some sharp inter-play from Fletcher, Giggs and Nani, the Portuguese lifted the ball through for Berbatov who then lobbed it over the advancing Chelsea goalkeeper, Hilário. Just eight days later Berbatov scored his and United's first league goal of the season, opening the scoring in their 3–0 home victory over Newcastle United in their opening fixture. On 29 August, Berbatov completed the scoring in a 3–0 home win over West Ham United. On 11 September, Berbatov netted his fourth goal of the season in a 3–3 away draw against Everton. On 19 September, he scored his first hat-trick for United in a 3–2 home win against Liverpool. The second goal, which was a fantastic overhead kick, became a contender for Goal of the Season. This was the first hat-trick by a Manchester United player against Liverpool in 64 years, since Stan Pearson in a 5–0 victory in 1946. On 4 October, Berbatov's fine start to the season was rewarded as he was named PFA Fans' Player of the Month, taking the honour ahead of Chelsea trio Didier Drogba, Florent Malouda and Nicholas Anelka. Berbatov made his 100th appearance for United on 10 November in a 0–0 away league draw in the Manchester derby. On 25 November, Berbatov was one of six United players named on a 55-man shortlist for the FIFPro World XI 2010. On 27 November, Berbatov tied a Premier League record as he scored five goals in a 7–1 home victory over Blackburn, equalling the feat achieved by Andrew Cole, Alan Shearer and Jermain Defoe (and becoming the first and only non-English player to do so). On 19 Decenber traveled back to Bulgaria for the ceremony "Footballer of the year" and he won the award a record 7th time. On 26 December Berbatov scored another 2 goals against Sunderland at Old Trafford and United won 2–0.

source:wikipedia