It has taken a while but it seems Manchester United have decided to stump up the extra few million required to meet Daniel Levy's asking price for Dimitar Berbatov. If the transfer goes through - the national newspapers would have us believe a deal is imminent - then Juande Ramos will be left with just one first team striker for the first game of the season against Middlesbrough. On a positive note, he will also have a further £28m with which to find a replacement for the mercurial Bulgarian.
Having cut a forlorn figure in each and every one of the club's pre-season friendlies it is clear that Berbatov is determined to sulk his way into a move to Old Trafford. It is surprising that Alex Ferguson has not been put off by the strikers lax on-pitch attitude but, having decided the ridiculously talented forward is the striker he has been looking for, it now seems inevitable that the man who has scored over forty goals for Tottenham in the past two years will be plying his trade for the Premier League champions this season.
To have lost two strikers who have scored close to sixty goals between them in each of the last two seasons is a massive blow to Ramos and everyone involved in the club. However, the potential loss of Berbatov will have been in the forefront of the Spaniard's mind this summer and, with successful pre-season matches suggesting he favours a 4-5-1 formation, we may not see a like for like replacement join the club during this transfer window.
For now Ramos will hope that Darren Bent can transfer to the new campaign the sort of form that has led him to be mentioned by Fabio Capello as a possible member of his forthcoming England squad. Now the focal point of attacks, Bent will benefit from the creative flair of Luka Modric and Giovani Dos Santos, whose propensity to play the ball to feet with slick, fast paced passes will suit the former Charlton striker's style perfectly. He may have struggled last season but his phenomenal goal record this summer has convinced Ramos he has a role to play in his new look Tottenham.
The reversal in fortunes has been remarkable. At the turn of the year Bent was the fourth choice striker at the club and couldn't get a game for love nor money - of which the club had spent a record amount in securing his services. He was destined to be forever spoken in the same breath as Sergei Rebrov and Helder Postiga. Now, as the only established striker at the club, he has a chance of redemption that looked inconceivable at the start of the summer.
Another player who has a significant role to play, at least for the next three years, is Gareth Bale, who buoyed everyone at the club by signing a new contract that will keep him at White Hart Lane until 2011. The Welsh international was very impressive before injury ruined his first season at the club and, after featuring throughout our pre-season matches he will be confident of being in the starting XI come Saturday.