Tottenham Hotspur was holding out for a transfer fee of 30 million pounds (38 million euro) for Bulgarian striker Dimitar Berbatov from Manchester United, British newspaper Observer has reported, and is unwilling to lower its valuation, still upset over the transfer that saw Michael Carrick leave White Hart Lane for Manchester in 2006.
The London club is intentionally asking for more money from the Old Trafford outfit, in the hope that it will scare the reigning English champions away from Tottenham's most prized asset, the newspaper said, quoting a source close to the player.
"United did to Spurs what Real Madrid are currently doing over Cristiano Ronaldo by forcing the club's hand," the source said, as quoted by Observer. Ronaldo, the Premier League player of the year, has made his intention clear he wants to leave Old Trafford, even though Manchester Unitedappear unwilling to sell.
Even though an unnamed Tottenham executive told the newspaper that there is "no bad blood" between the two clubs, the same executive added that, unlike in Carrick's case when the player had a year left on his contract, the White Hart Lane is under no pressure to sell.
Berbatov has two years on his contract with Tottenham, with an option for two more seasons, which the club plans to exercise, the tottenham official said.
The Bulgarian striker has topped Tottenham's scoring charts since joining from Bayer Leverkusen for 16 million euro in 2006, with a total of 46 goals in all competitions, including 27 in the league. He has said that he had turned down a last-minute attempt to sign for United, because Tottenham were the first English club to make an offer for his services.
Berbatov is also believed to be desperate for Champions League football, which Manchester can easily provide, but no other big-name club has shown interest in the Bulgarian, Observer's source said.
However, last week reports in Spain claimed that Barcelona could turn their attention towards signing Berbatov if their pursuit of Arsenal's Togolese striker Emmanuel Adebayor falls short.
