Dimitar Berbatov is still hurting over Sir Alex Ferguson’s Champions League final snub in 2011 but insists it’s all in the past right now.
It was something of a ‘mystery’ when Sir Alex Ferguson left Berbatov out of Manchester United’s Champions League final squad back in 2011.
It came as a shock given the Bulgarian’s rich run of form at the time.
Berbatov only just won the Premier League Golden Boot with 20 league goals and was also United’s top scorer that season.
But Ferguson had other plans in mind. The Bulgarian was completely left out of United’s squad for that game. Wayne Rooney and Javier Hernandez started upfront while Micheal Owen was on the bench. The Red Devils went on to lose 3-1 to Barcelona at Wembley.
Berbatov is still struggling to understand that decision but says he no longer holds any grudges with Sir Alex Ferguson.
“I was lucky in every club that I had coaches who were supportive of my way of seeing football,” Berbatov told Monday’s talkSPORT Breakfast.
“Of course there were ups and downs, but [Ferguson] was probably one of the managers in the world, if not the best, and we also had a great relationship.”
“Of course when I didn’t play I was always knocking on his door to ask why, and what I need to do better… the normal stuff where you need answers.”
Quizzed on Champions League final snub, Berbatov explained: “It was difficult to take.”
“It was not pleasant, it was not good for me because as I was the leading goalscorer of my team and the league and I was so confident.”
“When you’re scoring goals you feel that you can shoot from anywhere and score, so to be left out, it didn’t feel right.”
“Then as time goes past you start to look back and try to understand the decision. I know it was not only me, and other players in the team were in the same position in that particular final, and sometimes sacrifices needed to be made and the job of the manager is not easy.”
“I can see how it was difficult for Sir Alex to tell me that news, and in the end I still think it wasn’t the right decision, but it’s in the past.”
Following that incident, Berbatov stayed one more year at Old Trafford before departing for Fulham.
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