MANCHESTER United have finally completed the signing of Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov for £30.75million.

The Reds have been locked in negotiations all summer for the 27-year-old and the deal was hit by a series of late complications, including a £30m plus bid for the player from City.

Despite the late scares, Sir Alex Ferguson captured his man on a four-year deal. Fraizer Campbell will go to Spurs on a one-year loan as part of the deal.

As part of the deal, Tottenham have agreed not to pursue a complaint against United for making an illegal approach to the player.

Berbatov told www.manutd.com: "Joining Manchester United is a dream come true for me. I look forward to playing my part in helping this club win more honours in the years to come."

Ferguson added: "This is a key signing. Dimitar is one of the best and most exciting strikers in world football.

"His style and ability will give the team a different dimension and I’m sure he will be a popular player with the fans."

After a breathless afternoon, in which Berbatov spent time at United’s Carrington training complex and then Old Trafford, he was then taken to a south Manchester hospital for a medical.

With no problems reported, he returned to Old Trafford, where he was greeted warmly Ferguson and chief executive David Gill to begin the long wait to see if a deal could be done that would eventually see Berbatov wear the number nine shirt vacated by Louis Saha, following the Frenchman’s sale to Everton.

Papers

Forty minutes before the deadline expired, United submitted papers to the Premier League, hoping the registration would go through in time.

For Ferguson, Berbatov’s arrival was a matter of extreme urgency.

While United were always confident City would be seen off as potential bidders, Ferguson knew he needed another senior striker.

The Scot has won the last two Premier League titles, and the Champions League a man light of his preferred four-pronged forward line.

And he knew this time around, there would be no surprise signing such as Henrik Larsson to help the Reds out, or an unexpected seam of goals from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, or, due to his current injury, 42 from Cristiano Ronaldo.

Campbell might have impressed in pre-season but Ferguson realised it was too much to expect the youngster to hold down a regular place should either Wayne Rooney or Carlos Tevez be ruled out for an extended period.

And, though other targets such as Michael Owen, Thierry Henry and David Villa were mentioned, Berbatov was the man Ferguson kept returning to.

At 27, Berbatov is slightly older than most of United’s recent major purchases but Ferguson feels his silky touch - which the Scot first experienced when Bayer Leverkusen faced the Reds in Champions League combat five years ago.

Ferguson believes Berbatov has the quality to score goals himself and create chances for others.

Some may question the player’s temperament in light of his recent behaviour but Ferguson has worked with plenty of highly-strung individuals, including Eric Cantona, and got the best out of them.

He will expect to do the same with Berbatov, starting when United travel to Anfield to face Liverpool on September 13.

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