Manchester United boss, Alex Ferguson has confirmed that the club’s record signing striker http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Dimitar-Berbatov-c11254 is set to leave in the summer.
The Bulgarian striker, who moved to Old Trafford from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2008 for £30.75 million, is United’s most expensive signing to date. Back then, Tottenham had also accepted Manchester City’s bid of the player but after his move to Old Trafford went through, the talented striker claimed that "he would not even have thought about Manchester City".
However, Berbatov, who became the 50th United player to score 50 goals or more for the club, has been struggling to fit into the first team. The player’s involvement with the team had deteriorated, following him being axed from United’s squad game against http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Barcelona-c38604 last season.
On the eve of his team’s match against Athletic Bilbao, in the UEFA Europa League, Ferguson has gone on to reveal that he is ready to offload the striker.
"His concern is not getting first-team football," said Ferguson.
"At 31, he is looking at first-team football.
"It is difficult for me to guarantee that so it could lead to him looking elsewhere."
Berbatov, whose four year contract with the club is set to come to an end in the summer, could see the team extend his stay by one more year. The team is willing to do so, in order to avoid letting the forward leave. There is a clause present in the forward’s contract which would allow them to do so and the Red Devils are more than likely to utilise this clause.
“We will be taking up the option on his contract,” said Ferguson.
“But I understand that he wants to get first-team football, which is difficult for me to guarantee and it’s something we need to consider at the end of this season.”
Ferguson is wary of the fact that the club cannot expect the heavy fee which they paid for the striker, from whom the manager had high hopes of bringing something extra to Old Trafford.
During the winter transfer window, he was linked with a move to Bayern Munich but the rumours were dismissed by http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Alex-c4752 Ferguson who decided to extend his stay for another year.
"We will look at the end of the season but until then, he remains at United." Said Ferguson.
Berbatov joined United in 2008 and since then, in his 147 appearances for the club, he has scored 56 goals in all competitions. The highlight of his stay at Old Trafford was the 2010/11 season in which he netted 21goals for his side.
When united won the league in 2009, Berbatov became the first Bulgarian player to win English league title. He also tied a league record of scoring 5 times in a match against Blackburn at Old Trafford.
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