Five Cantonas

Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s move from AC Milan to PSG hasn’t just reverberated around the European elite, but it could well signal the end of one of Manchester United’s most mercurial talent’s time at the club. With Ibra gone, AC Milan have a hole to fill, and Dimitar Berbatov is just the man for them.

Similar in many ways to Ibrahimovic, although nowhere near as good, Berbatov doesn’t look to have a future at United and will be available for a knock-down fee should the Rossoneri come calling. We’re pretty well stocked up front and, as enjoyable as Berbatov is to watch, he’s never quite fit in at United and, given the direction the team seems to be going in, his languid style becomes more and more at odds with those around him with each passing transfer window.

It’s a shame it’s come to this, because Berbatov is one of the most watchable United players of recent years. For me, on his day, only Ronaldo, Cantona and Kanchelskis could come anywhere near to being as enjoyable and surprising to watch. You never knew what was around the corner with Berba. When he was lurking 25 yards out with players making runs in behind, absolutely anything could, and did, happen.

There are other options available to AC Milan – some market stalls have already started selling shirts with Dzeko on the back – but none of them seem to make as much sense to me as Berbatov. It’s a strange financial situation they find themselves in over there, selling arguably their two best players for over £50m and yet not having the funds to purchase a decent replacement  for either.

Whether he ends up at AC Milan or not, it seems increasingly likely that Dimitar Berbatov won’t be at the club come the start of next season. There are a number of ambitious clubs with financial backing such as QPR and West Ham looking to consolidate in the Premiership next season, and neither would turn their noses up at a player the calibre of Berbatov.