Reds stand firm over Berbatov fee

Stuart Mathieson

July 15, 2008

Dimitar Berbatov

UNITED will not be forced to pay over the odds for wanted Spurs striker Dimitar Berbatov.

The Bulgarian hitman is the number one summer target for the Reds.

But reports that the Premier League and Champions League winners have had a £28m offer accepted by the London club are wrong.

United's chief executive David Gill has still not lodged a bid for the 27-year-old.

He will fly out with the Reds touring party to South Africa on Thursday but could make contact with Spurs before the trip. United's valuation of Berbatov is well below the £30m coach Juande Ramos claimed it would cost buyers during the last January transfer window.

Tottenham are looking for replacements and United may help them in their quest by possibly offering Louis Saha as a makeweight in the deal.

The Parisian wasn't involved in United's pre-season friendly at Aberdeen last Saturday.

Agreement

If United and Spurs can come to some agreement there is no doubt Berbatov will need little persuading to make the switch.

Former White Hart Lane boss Martin Jol, who lost his job at Spurs last October and is now coach at Hamburg, says a move to Old Trafford was always uppermost for the Bulgarian.

Jol said: "I always had a good relationship with Dimitar. But the trouble is he wanted to go to United. It was in his mind and I could do nothing about it."

Meanwhile, Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz has played down speculation he is seeking a move away from Ewood Park.

United have been linked with the Paraguay international who scored 23 goals last season.

However, after spending the past month in his homeland, Santa Cruz revealed he is ready to return to England and continue his Blackburn career.

He said: "A lot of people said my transfer to a bigger club was about to happen, but I live in the present and I'm focused on Blackburn.

"I'm happy for the good season that I had and the important goals that I scored.

"I am motivated by the other teams' interest, but if I am not transferred then I want to have a good season at Blackburn."

What should be United's spending limit on Berbatov? Have your say.

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Diogenes10 (15/07/2008 at 09:18)

Why would Spurs want injury prone Saha? If United want Berbatov they will have to pay the asking price.

hughesie80, London (15/07/2008 at 09:23)

Spending limit for Berb - 17/18 Mil, or 15 mil plus Louis Haha!

Southern Red (15/07/2008 at 09:38)

15 plus Saha.

george (15/07/2008 at 09:52)

£17-£22mil.He's very skilful but UNITED won't get 10 years from him.Berbatov obviously wants to play for UNITED.(almost everyone does!)If he was 22 the fee would be higher but it's time transfer fees came back to reality.Some say we payed over the odds for Carrick and Hargreaves but if we did it was only marginal or it may have been bang on what the players value was! We should put in an offer for players then set a deadline the deal is negotiated by this date or we move on.

Lord Ruud (15/07/2008 at 09:56)

Absolute quality player but we hold the cards as he has only 2 years left on his contract so Spurs would rather sell him now than in 1 year when he'll be 28 and have a year left.

I think £24-25m should be as high as we go, even though he is the best option out there. Would rather do this than spend same sort of money on Huntelaar (no premiership exp.) or Santa Cruz (who is not in the same league as Berbatov) and is more of an out and out striker we have moved away from.

As for the Benzema brigade, he wants to play for Madrid or Milan so it'll be Ronaldo part 2 if we did (and I doubt it very much) get him.

Berbatov is made for our club and is around the same age as Cantona when he came and I believe he offers that something different which Eric brought, as his finishing, close control and appreciation of space is good as anyone.

seasider, blackpool (15/07/2008 at 10:03)

They'll end up paying around 18 million + add-ons, to make it look like Spurs are getting a better deal (as with Carrick).

Anyone who doesn't believe this lad will make United a better side just doesn't watch enough fooball. Personally I can't wait!

The Gordon Hill Fanclub (15/07/2008 at 10:10)

this is how i would like to see it all come together - ronaldo out for £70m + ramos - berbatov / aguero / richards in - wake me up when it happens.

GET AMONGST IT!

Andrew Kanchelskis, Bristol (15/07/2008 at 10:12)

Yeah nice one George, so we never negotiate again!? Brilliant.

Lord Ruud, I totaly agree with you.

Robbo, N2409 (15/07/2008 at 10:13)

I always had my doubts we were "set to swoop". Surely before that the "wantaway striker" needs to issue a "come-and-get-me plea"? Always important, I think, to get the transfer clichés in the right order.

edinburgh red, edinburgh (15/07/2008 at 10:14)

Just when the transfer market was starting to be sensible along came roman and put a spanner in the works, no way will spurs want saha, bid 25 million tops if they dont want to accept move targets, and george we def paid over the odds for carrick and hargreaves.

Andrew Kanchelskis, Bristol (15/07/2008 at 10:14)

Sorry George, my bad, misread what you were saying.

Numquam Moribimur, Arnhem (15/07/2008 at 10:16)

SAF has said that they are looking at bringing in young players, and also that this summer there might only be one player. Berbatov isn't old, but being a striker he might only have 3-5 good seasons left in him. Not exactly the young player to be moulded in SAF's image, is he.

On the other hand, when you look at the options out there there aren't that many almost fully developed young talents with world class potential. Benzema is one, Agüero another. Robinho is good, but not that young, too petit and not a type I think would fit in the United dressing room.

I say, buy John Fleck (give Rangers a good sum, though) and Agüero, and we have an attacking line good to go for the next 10-15 years!

Fredrik, Sweden (15/07/2008 at 10:29)

We have to ask ourselves what the alternative is? 25-28m is a lot of money but it might be the best deal.

Roque Santa Cruz would be a squad player, he's not good enough. Huntelaar might be cheaper, but he's more of a gamble and don't forget he's 24 not 19. Benzema, not available. Falcao, huge gamble. Why not test Barca's resolve with a cheeky 20m bid for Etoo? Still, I would prefer Berba.

Diogenes10 (15/07/2008 at 10:39)

Lord Ruud, your logic is flawed. Spurs have a two year option on Berbatov which is their right to exercise if they so wish, so effectively he could be a WHL for four more years. I agree he WANTS to play for United. But he has a value and has signed a contract. Spurs certainly would not take Saha as a makeweight. So Sir Alex must cough up or move on.

moorz, Dublin (15/07/2008 at 10:44)

For me Berbatov is the best striker available at the moment, the age thing doesn't really bother me cause i see him as a player who could play well into his 30's because he's such an intelligent footballer and doesn't really rely on pace. The price is gonna be over the odds, in this day and age it always is and Spurs are good at getting top dollar for their players, hopefully no more than 25mil.
And i can't see Louis being much of a deal breaker in this one, fully fit he's a fantastic player but as it stands just too unreliable, be lucky to get 5-7mil for him.

jerzy (15/07/2008 at 10:54)

Frankly I'm not in the least worried what we pay for him - his 'worth' is for the Utd 'suits' to decide.
Just want to see the very best at OT and thats what Berbatov is.
If we've offered 20 and Spurs want 30 then it'll probably end up at around 25m.

brian meanwell (15/07/2008 at 11:33)

There is no reason to pay over the odds when there is no one else out there prepared to pay these ludicrous prices. Tell Spurs to take it or leave it. 20m is already too much even though he is a terrific player.

tooth&claw, manchester (15/07/2008 at 11:38)

When Gill was asked if he was going to increase his £24m bid he said 'we've made no bids'.

As I said before, this is Spurs trying to flush out a United bid and Denchev jumping on the bandwagon. Expect a club insider to start leaking that a foreign club have expressed an interest. That's the normal procedure for this game. We're in no rush, if we decide that Berbatov is a suitable target, we can wait until Spurs get desperate. Or we can continue looking at other potential targets.

Dave (15/07/2008 at 11:52)

Don't debate the price - that's not our problem. The real issue is whether he's good enough for Utd. The answer to that is a resounding YES. I can't wait to see him line-up in a red shirt. As for his age, well let's say we get 4-5 years out of him. That's what we got from Eric and look at the impact he made. And that's plenty of time for players like Welbeck to develop and hopefully make it at the top level.

If we insist on talking £££s, Carrick only cost £12m upfront with adds-on dependent upon our success. Well, if winning the league twice and the champions league means we have to give Tottingham another £6m, then that was a ruddy bargain if you ask me....

Macca, Cornwall (15/07/2008 at 11:54)

The deal will be done for about £25m which is a fair price. He has scored 20+ goals in his first 2 seasons in an average spurs side, he will get at least 25 a season for us and could be the difference in Europe this season. His lazy approach wont effect the way we play as he will be alongside Rooney and/or Tevez.

As a few have said he is the best out there at present and he clearly wants to play for us, so the transfer makes sense. I can see him playing for United for 5-6 years as well so 25 million is nothing in the long run.

Lets just get the deal done and dusted as soon as possible.

wayneold, manc (15/07/2008 at 11:56)

Saha to go to the Utd misfits AKA Sunderland!

Robbo, N2409 (15/07/2008 at 12:27)

I just wish people would get over the age thing (just to confirm, he was born on 30th January, 1981, and so is 27 - I've seen every alleged age on here, from 28 to 73). Anyway, since when was there a rule against buying players in their mid-to-late 20s? It's like some punters are plotting some big push for the league title in 2016 or something. Or think that Fergie should be scouting South American playgrounds to find a suitable, toddler-age replacement for Scholesy. Berbatov is the finished article and can help us challenge in the league/Champions League NEXT SEASON. And the season after that. And the season after that. And the season after that. Potential takes time to develop (eg, it took three years of self-indulgent crap before we got anything from Ronaldo), so there's nothing wrong with the odd judicious move for established, experienced talent. Get him in.

Alias Smith, over the moon (15/07/2008 at 12:31)

T&C, leaving aside your rightful scepticism about the media coverage, and ignoring the price, do you think Berb would be a good signing? Would he complement the forwards we already have? I think he could be sensational for us providing he has the right attitude and accepts that he will be rotated with Rooney and Tevez. As with most big-name strikers we sign, he would have to get off to a quick start though.

Red Dawn (15/07/2008 at 12:32)

tooth&claw,

When did David Gill say that and to whom?

It was a big surprise to me yesterday that we were supposed to have agreed a £28 million deal, because that is some way over the odds. Spurs will not get the supposed £30 million they are looking for, but ofcourse they have every right to look for as much as they can.

If Berbatov wants to leave, and only wants to join United, then we are fully in the driving seat.

Yes, Spurs do have the right to extend his contract by a further 2 years, but that won't happen without the players consent, as it would have already happened by now if it were to be the case.

As it stands now, he has the right to exercise FIFA Article 17 (Webster Clause) come the end of next season and buy out the remaining year of his contract for a very low sum.

Even if Spurs were to excercise the extension clause against the players will, he could still use FIFA Article 17 to buy out what would then be 3 years remaining on his deal, because the player did not agree or sign a new deal, but the current one was just extended by his employers.

The cost of buying out 3 years would still be very low considering how much he is paid a week. It would cost him around £5 million.

You can be sure United are fully aware of all this and there is no way Spurs are going to let a situation like that arise.

As already stated, if Berbatov insists he wants to leave, and wants to join United only, then we are fully in contol when it comes to negotiations and we most certainly won't be held to ransom.

Rob86, manchester (15/07/2008 at 13:09)

Regarding his age, remember Fergie said he will only be around for three more seasons. Berbatov will be in his prime over that coming period.

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