Man Utd: Dimitar Berbatov's filthy 2008 assist for Cristiano Ronaldo was pure genius

Dimitar Berbatov had a tendency for the spectacular.

The gangly-looking Bulgarian striker was like a magician in many ways, pulling something out of nothing when you least expected it.

There was certainly more to him than met the eye, that’s for sure, and he proved that emphatically in 2008 when he provided what is surely one of greatest Premier League assists of all time.

The moment of magic came when Man Utd welcomed West Ham to Old Trafford.

The Red Devils won 2-0 on the day, courtesy of two Cristiano Ronaldo goals.

However, it wasn’t the Portuguese star that stole the headlines the next morning with the media focus held firmly on the Bulgarian for his genius.

With his team already winning 1-0 after Ronaldo’s 14th minute opener, Berbatov chased after an over-hit ball to the West Ham byline whilst being pursued by James Collins.

It was a nothing spot, Berbatov seemingly had nowhere to go and many expected him just to play it safe and maintain possession.

But that’s not the way the Man Utd legend liked to roll and instead, after cutely glancing over his shoulder to check his opponent’s position, pulled off what we all now know to be the infamous ‘Berba spin’ in spectacular fashion.

Collins was totally sold and left hopeless as his man sailed by and charged into the box, freeing up Berbatov to unselfishly pick out young Ronaldo for his second goal of the match.

Check out the stunning passage of play below.

That is just downright rude on every level – what a player Berbatov was when in his pomp.

It’s no wonder Man Utd fans still adore him to this day when he could produce such magnificence on a football pitch.

That particular assist proved his personal highlight for the 2008/2009 season, although he also