Dimitar Berbatov has admitted that he held talks with Sunderland earlier this season.
Dimitar Berbatov
Free agent striker Dimitar Berbatov has told Sky Sports that he held talks over a move to Sunderland earlier this season, but no deal was done.
Berbatov, 36, was a Premier League hero during his time with Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United and then Fulham, scoring a combined 94 Premier League goals in 229 games over his spells with the clubs.
The Bulgarian dazzled fans with his nonchalant approach and incredible technique, scoring some remarkable goals in the process – but he current sits as a free agent.
Berbatov has turned out for Monaco and PAOK Salonika since leaving the Premier League, but having been released by the latter last summer, he has yet to return to football.
The striker hasn’t been able to find a club in almost a year, and whilst the fans of many clubs believe Berbatov would be a good signing, no club has agreed just yet.
However, it does seem that Berbatov has held talks with some clubs, having told Sky Sports that he discussed a deal with Sunderland earlier this season – but nothing came from the talks.
Berbatov added that he wants to play football ‘a little bit more’ before retiring, serving as something of a come-and-get-me plea to Premier League clubs.
“I want to play and to be honest I had a couple of conversations with managers, even Sunderland,” said Berbatov. “But in the end nothing happened. When you play for football for so long, and I’m still in good shape and I’m staying in shape, football is my life.”
Dimitar Berbatov scores for Manchester United
“At this stage of my life it’s only about football now. Just to play a little bit more, one more game or one more year. To enjoy my team-mates, the football, the pitch, the fans. But as I said nothing came of it in the end so sometimes life is what it is,” he added.
Sunderland have been lacking goals this season, and a move for Berbatov would have reunited him with ex-Spurs strike partner Jermain Defoe in a potentially dangerous – if short-lived, given their respective ages – strike duo.
Instead, manager David Moyes has gone with Defoe and Victor Anichebe for most of the season, leaving the Black Cats on the verge of relegation – and some fans will wonder just how different their season could have been had they signed Berbatov to bring some extra quality to the Sunderland side.
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