Football FanCast columnist Rob Facey wonders whether Tottenham will be able to recover from Berbatov’s expected transfer to Manchester United and asks whether his sale will enable the club to grow into genuine challengers to the Big Four, or whether it will mean another season of Premier League mediocrity.

Dimitar Berbatov has broken his silence regarding his future and urged Spurs to let him follow his “dream” and move to Old Trafford, comparing himself to Man United legend Eric Cantona at the same time.

This bad news comes after a rotten first weekend of the Premier League season for Spurs fans who saw their side slump to a 2-1 defeat at Middlesbrough in which Berbatov inexplicably started on the bench. His 20 minute cameo at the end of the game is now likely to be his last in a Spurs shirt as the Bulgarian striker has now joined up with the national side in preparation of their midweek friendly against Bosnia-Herzogovina.

“I’m now in Tottenham, but no one can disagree with me wanting to follow my dream,” Berbatov said, as reported in The Times.

He also expressed his displeasure at starting on the bench behind Darren Bent, the England striker who has been on fire in pre-season.

“If I had been laughing when I was on the bench, people would say I was an idiot."

Manchester United’s need for an out and out striker was clear for all to see yesterday as they struggled to a 1-1 draw with Newcastle without the likes of Tevez, Ronaldo and Saha, all of whom are out injured. And although Berbatov did not explicitly name Manchester United as his favoured route out of North London, all involved with the transfer, including the fans of both sides, can read between the lines.

£30m is the projected fee that Sir Alex Ferguson will have to pay and with two weeks before the transfer window shuts Ramos should be able to find a decent replacement, but this is not an ideal start to the season in which many had thought Spurs would be able to challenge the Big Four.

After a pre-season that caused such optimism at White Hart Lane, a below-par performance on the opening day, a baffling team selection and the key player now stating his desire to leave the club on the record, do Spurs’ high hopes already seem an empty wish? Or, can this £30m be pumped back into strengthening the first team squad? Where are the biggest problems after Saturday’s lacklustre performance?

There has been a sense of inevitability regarding this transfer for quite a while, but how do Spurs fans feel about the timing? It is, after all, the first Monday of the new season and Berbatov has decided to open his mouth shortly before flying out of the country. Don’t the White Hart Lane faithful deserve more than this? Will his transfer mean another season of mediocrity in the league, or will it enable to club to grow rather than being held to ransom by one player?

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