With comments that are sure to infuriate supporters of Tottenham Hotspur, one striker has recalled his disappointment at signing for the north Londoners rather than Barcelona, Real Madrid or Manchester United.
Dimitar Berbatov would eventually get a move to Old Trafford later in his career, but the Bulgarian was seemingly none too impressed at signing for Spurs initially. Those feelings would soon change after meeting then Tottenham manager, Martin Jol.
“I was like, ‘wait a minute, Spurs want me? What? Not Barcelona, Real Madrid and Manchester United?’ Berbatov said on talkSPORT‘s ‘Up front with’ series.
“I was thinking all these stupid questions because I was thinking I was doing so well that a big team must come after me.
“[…] In the end, their persistence was a big factor for me, and of course, meeting [manager] Martin Jol was the moment I knew I had to go there. He’s sitting in the chair like the Godfather!
“He was like ‘Berba, welcome my boy!’ I was telling myself, ‘this is the right place’ purely because sometimes you just feel the connection with someone, I don’t know how to explain it. Secondly, because Martin looked like my late granddad, who I loved to death. I was thinking to myself ‘I think we are going to have something here.’”
Berbatov went on to become a much loved member of the Spurs side, helping to secure the 2008 League Cup by scoring against Chelsea in a 2-1 final victory, the last time the north Londoners earned themselves a trophy.
His form at the time meant that a move elsewhere, whilst not quite an inevitability, was on the cards, and when Sir Alex Ferguson eventually came in with a bid from Man United, Berbatov had finally secured a switch that he had hoped would’ve happened years before.